The Bereavement Support Team can provide step-by-step guidance and help you deal with financial affairs when someone dies
You only need to inform us once of the death of a loved one. If the deceased person held any other products with HSBC, we will ensure the necessary teams are notified.
Current and savings accounts
Once we have seen the necessary identification and paperwork, we can normally release funds held in HSBC current accounts or savings products within 10 working days. Interest will not be charged on accounts that are overdrawn.
Joint accounts
Once we have formal confirmation of the death, we will automatically transfer the account(s) into the survivor(s) name, but keep the same account number(s).
Direct debits and standing orders will continue and you will need to let us
know of any that need to be stopped.
The account holder can continue to use existing cheque books and debit cards and we will send a new cheque book and paying-in book in their name only.
Credit cards
All credit cards in the deceased's name are cancelled as soon as we are notified of the death. This includes cards held by a second cardholder on the deceased's account: they will now need to reapply for a credit card in their own name.
You will also need to cancel any regular payments or subscriptions on the credit card account by contacting the relevant organisation or provider directly.
Unless the person who died had credit card repayment protection insurance, any outstanding balance on the credit card must be paid from the estate.
Personal Loans
The loan will be frozen and no further debit interest or charges will be taken from the date we are notified of the death. If there is Payment Protection Insurance, we will arrange for the claim to be submitted. If not, the loan will need to be repaid from the estate. For joint loans the remaining account holder can continue to make the usual repayments or repay the loan in full.
Mortgages
Once you've notified us of the death we will update the mortgage details. The account will not be frozen and interest on the outstanding balance will continue to accrue. If the mortgage is in the sole name of the deceased, the personal representative(s) will need to arrange for it to be repaid.
Options for this include using the money from a dedicated life insurance policy or the estate, or alternatively arranging a new mortgage for the beneficiaries If the mortgage is in joint names we may be able to change the loan into just one name once we have the relevant information.
Pensions
If the deceased had a pension with HSBC, our assessors will review the pension arrangements – including how much has been saved in the pension fund and, where applicable, who the nominated beneficiaries are. They will then contact the personal representative to explain what the next steps are.
Investments
If the deceased had investments with HSBC such as bonds, a stocks and shares ISA or a share portfolio, the relevant teams will contact the personal representative to confirm the holdings and next steps. These are considered part of the estate and so should be valued and then distributed in accordance with the person's will.
To make it easier to value the estate, HSBC can provide you with a full statement of the person's investment holdings with us. Ask the Bereavement Support Team for more details.
Life insurance
If the deceased had life insurance with HSBC, we will contact the personal representative to explain the process and assess the claim. Payment of a valid claim will normally be made within one calendar month of us receiving notification of the death.
Accounts with other banks
All banks, building societies and financial services providers will have similar processes that need to be followed after someone has died. You will need to contact each bank or provider that the deceased had accounts with, and most will require specific pieces of information from you before releasing funds.
If you are not sure where the deceased had accounts, you can use the online service www.mylostaccount.org.uk to track down a complete list of all the organisations that have accounts in the deceased person's name.
