How Much Of The Hidden £2 Billion Is Yours?

£2 billion of unclaimed money is set to transform charity and voluntary sector funding.

Claim Your Share Of £2 Billion Now

The aptly named Commission On Dormant Assets finds pools of lost or forgotten money.  In addition to having identified around half a billion pounds of dormant assets currently sitting in the insurance and pensions sector, it’s discovered unclaimed assets right across the financial services sector. 

Some of the hidden billions includes:

£715 million from investments and wealth management

£550 million from the pensions and insurance sectors

£150 million from securities

£140 million from banks and building societies

It’s estimated a potential £40 million to £50 million a year is available on an on-going basis.

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The Commission aims to reunite financial and non-financial assets with their owners, which have been lost or forgotten by beneficiaries or providers, and to limit future dormancy.  If it’s unsuccessful, these funds are recycled to address social issues in the UK.

The current scheme has already distributed £360 million from accounts to go towards supporting good causes.  Extending it could deliver lasting change to the way voluntary and charity sectors are funded.

In the insurance and pensions sector, the report said assets become dormant when someone moves home or dies without the insurer being notified, or otherwise forgets about their policies.  It said firms do not currently address the issue of dormant assets, preferring to leave them invested to meet any reclaim liabilities that may arise.


Here’s the full report on the hidden billions.

Are Your Missing Pensions Part Of The Unclaimed Half A Billion?

To ensure you don’t miss out on pension money to which you’re entitled, The Pensions Advisory Service has created an online aid, which is available from its website.  Michelle Cracknell, its Chief Executive said:

Every year our service is contacted by hundreds of people asking about how they can locate a pension they contributed to.  Many of the people who contact us struggle to find lost pensions or may not even know how to begin the process.  Our new ‘trace a lost pension’ tool helps customers understand whether a pension is likely to be due to them and gives them tips on what they can do to find them. It also explains how we can help.

More Than One Billion Coins Will Shortly Become Worthless

The new £1 coin is now in circulation, signalling the beginning of the end for the round pound, which will be completely phased out by 15 October 2017.

The new design is meant to be harder for criminals to fake.  It’s billed as the "most secure coin in the world".  It’s just as well, for apparently, around 45 million of the round coins are counterfeit.  That’s 3 per cent of the estimated 1.5 billion coins currently in circulation.

Royal Mint says the new £1 features a complex "patented high-security feature" to prevent copycats.  Distinctive features, including grooves on the coin and tiny lettering, are designed to make it easier for shopkeepers and bank tellers to recognise a genuine coin.

You can use both old and new coins from 28 March 2017.  But you only have until 15 October 2017 to spend old £1 coins or return them to the bank.  So raid your piggy banks, check your sofa and your glove compartments, and cash them in before they become worthless.

However, it may not necessarily be a case of ‘use it or lose it’.

According to experts, old £1 coins could become collectible when they cease to become legal tender, especially complete collections from 1983 to 2017.  Currently, those in 'brilliant uncirculated condition' could be desirable as souvenirs, but are unlikely to become valuable collectors’ items.


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