Not upheld: failure to account for funds / missing account complaint against Santander UK Plc

Decision detail

Summary

Mr R complained that Santander failed to account for funds held in a TESSA account he opened with Robert Fleming & Co Ltd in 1992, which held approximately £6,000 in 1996. After living abroad from 1999 to 2014, Mr R rediscovered paperwork relating to the account in September 2025 and requested payment of the funds. Santander was unable to locate the account despite conducting thorough searches. The ombudsman found that Santander's search was proper and comprehensive, and the absence of any record of the account, combined with the fact that Robert Fleming accounts were only transferred to Santander from 2001 (after the last evidence of the account's existence), indicated the account was closed many years ago, possibly before transfer to Santander. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman was satisfied that Santander conducted a proper and thorough search for the account. The fact that Santander could locate another Robert Fleming account closed six years prior but could not find any record of the TESSA account or its closure is persuasive evidence that the TESSA was closed many years ago. Given that Robert Fleming accounts were only transferred to Santander from 2001, and the last evidence of the account predates that transfer, it is possible the account was never transferred to Santander at all. Banks are only required to keep records of closed accounts for as long as is reasonable, not indefinitely, and indefinite retention could breach data protection laws.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website