UK households could be sitting on billions of forgotten savings

Could you be sitting on a possible windfall? Vicky Shaw reveals how to track down lost sums of money

You may be richer than you think as many people are sitting on savings pots they’ve long forgotten about.

While the idea of a windfall suddenly appearing out of nowhere might seem far-fetched, it’s thought UK households are sitting on billions of pounds worth of lost savings.

One in seven (14%) of us think we’ve lost track of a financial product, such as a current, individual savings or other type of savings account, premium bonds, or children’s savings, according to a survey from finnancial services provider NS&I.

Meanwhile, calculations released by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) show an estimated 1.6 million lost pension pots worth nearly £20 billion could remain unclaimed.

Here’s a look at why we’re losing track of all this money – and how you could get it back ... Why are we leaving cash scattered?

Forgetting to redirect post if you’ve moved house or moving jobs could increase the likelihood of forgetting savings accounts or pension pots. With the average person having about 11 jobs over their career, and moving home eight times, it’s easy to see how paperwork can get

“There are various ways to track down lost money”

lost. And while the rise in technology may help us remember what money we’ve got, it can also pose its own problems.

NS&I’s research found that forgetting passwords and log-in codes is a common reason for people losing track.

Is the problem getting better or worse?

Millions of new pension savers have been created since the launch of automatic enrolment in 2012. While this is helping people boost their retirement savings, it could also lead to more pension pots going missing – it’s estimated there could be as many as 50m dormant and lost pensions by 2050.

There are various ways to track down lost money, depending on the type of financial product. If you know who the provider is, the simplest way may be to contact them directly, digging out any evidence you have such as old policy numbers and addresses.

There are also free-to-use services which could help to track down your cash. The UK Government has a free pension tracing service at gov.uk/find-pensioncontact-details. You’ll need the name of an employer or a pension provider to use the service.

Or if you’ve lost track of money held with a bank, building society or with NS&I, which is backed by the Treasury, the My Lost Account service could reunite you with your cash: MyLostAccount.org.uk.

Is there anything else you should consider?

Scammers may promise large amounts of money or other valuables, and persuade victims to part with their own money as “fees” for their release. In reality, these windfalls rarely exist. Homes in roads named Elm Street can sell for around a third less than the average house price in their area, analysis has found.

Yorkshire Building Society analysed more than 30 roads named Elm Street using Land Registry data, comparing house sales prices with those in their surrounding postal districts since 2013.

Ahead of Halloween on Wednesday, the building society found that on average, homes on streets with the same name as that featured in the A Nightmare On Elm Street films sold for 35% lower than the average for their postcode area.

But not all Elm Streets had typical selling prices lower than their area average – so buyers hoping to grab a bargain may not be lucky.

Chris Irwin, Yorkshire Building Society mortgage manager, said buying a home somewhere with an unusual or significant name “could be an opportunity to buy a property in an area which they may otherwise have not been able to afford”.

WINDFALL: A survey has shown many are leaving financial products scattered and forgetting all about them