How to find a lost bank account in the UK

If you have lost touch with an old bank account, building society account or NS&I product, there is a free official route, and you do not need to pay anyone to use it.

Start here: My Lost Account

My Lost Account is a free service that traces lost bank and building society accounts and lost National Savings and Investments (NS&I) products. It says plainly that there is no need to pay a fee to find your old accounts.

How it works, in its own words: you set up an online profile and complete the search form. Your application is sent to whichever account providers you choose. When the search results are ready, you receive either an email alert or a letter.

What to have ready

• The names of the banks or building societies you think you used, including old names before any merger.
• Every address you lived at while the account was open.
• Your name as it was at the time, if it has changed.
• Any account numbers, passbooks, old statements or letters you still have.

The more of this you give, the easier it is for each provider to match the record to you.

If you know which bank it was

Contact that bank directly as well. It can tell you what it needs to confirm your identity.

Old Premium Bonds and other NS&I products

My Lost Account also covers lost NS&I products. If you still hold Premium Bonds but have lost track of prizes, NS&I runs its own free Premium Bonds prize checker.

Watch out for

Anyone who asks for a fee or a percentage to search for a lost bank account in the UK. The official route is free.

Worked abroad too?

Bank accounts are only one kind of money people lose track of. If you worked in more than one country, old pensions are often the larger sum. PensionHunter, the cross-border pension option we feature on our Find your money guide, runs a free lost pension checker.

We always point people to the free government tracing route first, and we take nothing from financial advisers.