The Government set out in their March consultation document that dormant accounts would include bank and building society accounts where there has been no customer-initiated activity for a period of at least 15 years. On this basis, an assessment by banks and building societies suggests that between £250 million and £350 million lies currently unclaimed in banks, and up to £150 million unclaimed in the building society sector. These figures are for the United Kingdom. There are no specific estimates for Scotland.
The banks and building societies have committed to a comprehensive recruiting exercise in advance of the introduction of an unclaimed assets scheme in the UK. This will build on existing arrangements to help customers to track down their accounts.