Supporting you when life changes

If you allow another person to use your credit card, they’ll get a card and can spend on your account like you do.

• It's simple to apply.
• It's usually free.
• You remain responsible for any outstanding balance.
• The new user will be credit checked.

There are two ways you can do this:

1. ‘Either to sign’ joint account

Your joint account holder has near total control of the account:

• It's simple to apply.
• Both account holders have full access to the account.
• Both account holders need to agree to close the account or stop joint access.

2. 'Both to sign' joint account

You keep some control, but all transactions need two signatures:

• It's simple to set up.
• You keep control, as both account holders need to sign for transactions or requests.
• Using the account day-to-day might be more difficult in practice.

This is useful if you want someone else to access your account for a limited time.

• It's simple and quick to apply.
• It's usually free.
• It gives someone else specific access to your account.
• You can adjust it to suit your needs.
• There are some restrictions - for example we can’t give permission to access your account online.

If you want to act on behalf of someone who is unable to make a decision for themselves, you can apply for a Court of Protection Link opens in a new window order. This is a legal court document letting someone else (called a deputy) make decisions for you. It is for people who have lost capacity with no lasting power of attorney arranged.

A power of attorney is a legal document that allows someone to make decisions for you, or act on your behalf if you can’t or if you don’t want to make your own decisions.

You can only set up a power of attorney while you still have mental capacity.

There are different types of powers of attorney depending on where you live- we’ve got some more information below

It's never too early to set up a power of attorney, it can save time and money if you can’t manage your own affairs and need someone to look after them for you. It’s an important decision no matter how old you are if you’ve got finances and assets to protect.

You’re can only set up a power of attorney while you still have mental capacity.

If you lose mental capacity and haven’t named someone as an attorney, one of your friends or relatives would have to apply to the Court of Protection (COP). The COP will appoint a deputy to manage your affairs and make decisions on your behalf. This is called a Court of Protection Order. But this can be a long and expensive process.

Lasting power of attorney (known as an LPA)

An LPA allows someone else to make decision about your finances. It can come into use if you lose mental capacity, or if you want someone else to be able to make decisions for you when you still have mental capacity.

LPAs need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before they can be used. They will still work after you lose mental capacity.

You could set up an LPA if you want to make sure someone can act for you if you lose mental capacity in the future.

General power of attorney

A general power of attorney is a document that allows someone else to make decisions for you if you have mental capacity. It'll stop when you lose capacity to make your own decisions.

You might want to set one up if you need someone to act for you if in the short term, like when you're on holiday or if you regularly work abroad.

You don't need to register a general power of attorney with the Office of the Public Guardian.

Enduring power of attorney (known as an EPA)

An EPA is an older form of power of attorney and you can’t apply for one now. They were replaced by Lasting Powers of Attorney. If you already have one that was signed before 1 October 2007, you can still use it. It doesn’t need registered to use if you have mental capacity. Your attorney(s) will need to register it with the Office of the Public Guardian when they think you’re starting to lose or have lost mental capacity.

Continuing power of attorney

A continuing power of attorney allows someone else to make decision about your finances. It can come into use if you lose mental capacity, or if you want someone else to be able to make decisions for you when you still have mental capacity.

Continuing powers of attorney need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) before they can be used. They will still work after you lose mental capacity.

You may wish to ask a solicitor to help you write a continuing power of attorney.

You could set up a continuing power of attorney if you want to make sure you're covered in the future.

Ordinary power of attorney

An ordinary power of attorney is a document that allows someone else to make decisions for you if you have mental capacity. It'll stop when you lose capacity to make your own decisions.

You might want to set one up if you need someone to act for you if in the short term, like when you're on holiday or if you regularly work abroad.

You don't need to register an ordinary power of attorney with the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland).

When you want to apply for a lasting power of attorney (LPA), you can do this using www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney or a solicitor can help you apply.

Your attorney(s) can’t make decisions for you until your LPA is registered with the Office of the Public Guardian. This currently costs around £82.

You may want to get a solicitor to draw up the continuing power of attorney. Once it’s drawn up and signed then it needs to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) before your attorney can make decisions for you.

Further information can be found on the OPG website. Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) (publicguardian-scotland.gov.uk)

If you would like to register a power of attorney then please contact us in Store.

You’ll need to give us

• Identification for the donor (if you’re not already a customer) and the attorney(s).
• The original or a certified copy of the power of attorney, or if it’s an LPA , you can provide the code that the Office of the Public Guardian gave you to allow us to view an online summary of the LPA.

A certified copy is one where somebody has confirmed that the copy is exactly the same as the original power of attorney.

We only accept copies certified by a solicitor (within the last 6 months) or by you if you still have mental capacity.

Mental capacity means the ability to make or communicate decisions when they need to be made. To have mental capacity you need to be able to understand the decision you’ve got to make, why you need to make it, and the likely outcome of the decision.

Some people will be able to make decisions about some things but not others. For example, they may be able to decide what to buy for dinner but can’t understand about how to operate or manage their bank account.

If your power of attorney only comes into operation after you’ve lost mental capacity then we’ll need to see confirmation of this from a medical professional such as a doctor.

Ordinary/general power

You cancel or revoke an ordinary or general power of attorney simply by letting us know that you don’t want it to apply anymore.

Lasting power of attorney

You can cancel a lasting power of attorney if you still have mental capacity.

You need to send the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) the original LPA and a written statement called a ‘deed of revocation’.

The wording for the deed of revocation can be found through this link Make, register or end a lasting power of attorney: End your lasting power of attorney - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

When you’ve cancelled the power of attorney with the OPG, you need to let us know so that we can update your accounts.

Continuing power of attorney

You can cancel a lasting power of attorney if you still have mental capacity.

You’ll need to send the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) a revocation notice which clearly states what you wish to cancel. The revocation notice can be typed or handwritten and must be signed and dated by you as the granter of the power of attorney. There isn’t standard wording for this.

You’ll also need to send a revocation certificate (which you can find on the Office of the Public Guardian’s website). It needs to be completed by a Scottish solicitor or a UK registered doctor.

They have to interview you to ensure that you understand what you are doing by revoking the power of attorney.

Lasting power of attorney (LPA)

Your LPA may end if your attorney:

• loses the ability to make decisions - ‘loses mental capacity’
• divorces you or ends your civil partnership if they’re your husband, wife or partner
• becomes bankrupt
• is removed by the Court of Protection
• dies

If you’ve got a power of attorney drawn up outside the UK, we’ll need to see the original, or a recently certified copy.

We also need a lawyer in the country it was made in to confirm in writing that:

• the power is fit for purpose in the UK;
• the POA continues if the donor loses mental capacity.

The lawyer’s signature / confirmation must be officially stamped by the government body in the country the power was drawn up in to confirm the authenticity of the solicitor providing the information.

If the person has lost capacity, they can’t set up a power of attorney now as they won’t be able to understand what they are signing.

You would need to go to court to get an order allowing you to act for the person. In Scotland you would apply for a guardianship order and in England & Wales it would be a deputyship order through the Court of Protection.

A guardianship order is an order from the Scottish courts which allows someone to act on behalf of a person who has lost mental capacity. These are usually applied for because the person has lost capacity without putting a power of attorney in place. The process for getting a guardianship order can take some time and can be costly.

A deputyship order is an order from the English Court of Protection which allows someone to act on behalf of a person who has lost mental capacity. These are usually applied for because the person has lost capacity without putting a power of attorney in place. The process for getting a deputyship order can take some time and can be costly.

If you have mental capacity, you can set up what we call a third party mandate. That will give your chosen person(s) full powers to operate your account in the same way that you can, by making payments, taking money out, having a debit card and having access to your internet banking. They would have full access to your account.

A third party mandate will only work while you have mental capacity. So if you lose mental capacity then the person won’t be able to operate your account.

A third party mandate isn’t the same as a power of attorney. It doesn’t work if you lose capacity.

Another difference between someone operating an account under a power of attorney or a third party mandate is that under a power of attorney, the attorney is under a legal duty to act in your best interests. There isn’t such a duty under a third party mandate.

If you would like to set up a third party mandate then please contact us in Store or by telephone.

• Your name and contact details
• Suitable identification
• The original death certificate or certified copy
• If there is a will, the original or a certified copy of the will
• Information about any items held in safe custody with us (if applicable)
• The original Certificate of Confirmation/Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration or certified copy (if the value of the estate is £35k or over)
• All cards (debit and credit), cheque books and passbooks
• If you are appointing a solicitor, details of the firm

• Current full valid UK/non-UK passport
• Current UK/EEA photocard driving license
• Current EEA member state ID card

Other documents may be accepted. For further information please contact the Bereavement Services Team.

Virgin Money accounts are identified by a unique 12 digit reference number with one letter known as the account number or have a sort code starting 08-xx-xx.

Clydesdale Bank accounts can be identified by sort codes starting 82-xx-xx.

Yorkshire Bank accounts can be identified by sort codes starting 05-xx-xx.

Our Bereavement Services Team, will check all the details and contact you shortly.

If you’re struggling to use our online notification service, you can contact our Bereavement Services team directly or visit your local Virgin Money store.

For Virgin Money accounts, the team can be contacted on:
0345 600 7301
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

For Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank accounts, the team can be contacted on:
0800 011 3238
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

Once we’ve been notified, we ‘ll check for all the accounts held with us. The next steps relating to each type of account or product are as follows:

Sole Accounts
Sole accounts will be frozen and any payments into and out of the account stopped. Where any payments are still required to be made you should contact the person or people who the payment is to be made to make other arrangements. Interest will continue to be applied if applicable. Any funds held in the accounts form part of the estate and will be released when the settlement is complete.

Joint Accounts
Joint accounts will stay active, and we will change these into the name of the surviving party. Any new cheque/passbooks will be issued if necessary. All payments into or out of the account will continue as normal.

Credit Cards
We will arrange for any cards held in the deceased’s name to be cancelled and will explain any next steps on a call. These steps will depend on whether there is an outstanding balance on the account.

Term Deposit Accounts
Term deposits can be left until maturity and will continue to earn interest. Term deposit accounts, whether joint or sole, can be closed without receiving a penalty.

Cash ISAs
Cash ISAs are treated in the same way as a sole account. Any funds will be released, and accounts closed at settlement.

If there are a number of Bank accounts to settle and payments due to the estate, you may want to open an executor account with us to gather all the money.

If you want to discuss this further, please contact our Bereavement Services Team or your local store.

Inheritance tax may be payable depending on the value of the estate and who the estate is being left to. The personal representative(s) are usually responsible for paying this, using the funds from the estate.

Please let us know via the online form or when the bereavement services team contact you. You can also contact us by telephone or in store to discuss.

We’ll release any funds as soon as possible. What we’ll need to release the funds depends on the total amount held with us:

Discharge and indemnity
When the total funds held with us are less than £35,000 (and the estate is such that Certificate of Confirmation/Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration are not required), our Bereavement Services team will ask for this form to be completed. We also use this form when the balance falls below £35,000 once funeral expenses have been paid. When the total funds held with us are less than £35,000 (and the estate is such that Certificate of Confirmation/Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration are not required), our Bereavement Services team will ask for this form to be completed. We also use this form when the balance falls below £35,000 once funeral expenses have been paid.

We’ll need suitable identification from all parties signing the form.

Certificate of Confirmation/Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration
When the total funds held with us are more than £35,000, or the value of the estate is such that Certificate of Confirmation/Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration is required we’ll need to see sight of the original or certified copy. These official documents allow personal representative(s) to close accounts and administer the estate.

If you’re unsure of your legal obligations, you may want to seek independent legal advice. Alternatively, you can visit gov.uk Link opens in a new window.

There are some expenses relating to funeral and estate costs which can be settled using the money in the bank account(s) We can either do this directly with the relevant company, or if payment has already been settled, we can reimburse the relevant person. All we require is the invoice or proof of payment. We can also release all funds to settle part of the expenses if the accounts we hold aren’t enough to settle the expenses in full.

These can include:

Funeral expenses

• Funeral service
• Catering
• Flowers
• Headstone

Estate costs

• Confirmation/probate fees
• Inheritance tax costs

If you need any expenses to be paid, please let the store know, or forward the details to our Bereavement Services team.

This is a service which lets you tell all government organisations about a death. The service will work to notify key government departments included in the list below:

DWP
HMRC
DVLA
Passport Office
Local Authority

To find out more, please visit www.gov.uk/after-a-death/organisations-you-need-to-contact-and-tell-us-once Link opens in a new window.