Clause 11
Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill [Lords]
12:15 pm
Mark Field (Cities of London and Westminster, Conservative)
I want to say a few words about the amendment, with which I have a certain amount of sympathy. I also want to put on record the specific concerns of a constituent of mine—Mr. Manzetti of Belvedere house in Grosvenor road, Westminster—which were answered in part by an exchange of correspondence with the erstwhile Economic Secretary to the Treasury that took place in the summer. Having worked in the insurance industry for more than 35 years, Mr. Manzetti is worried that not enough is being done to seek out the owners of assets, along the lines of the proposal by the hon. Member for Taunton. In a modern world in which there are websites and far more detail that can potentially be demanded and accessed by the public, banks and building societies are becoming more proactive in their efforts to hunt down the owners of assets. Mr. Manzetti’s experience of this world leads him to believe that there has been a reluctance on the part of insurers and others to follow up unclaimed benefits or dormant accounts. There is still concern as to whether that process has been adequately open.
As the hon. Member for Taunton said, there is now a desire for companies to be required to list on freely accessible websites the names of all holders of unclaimed assets and for part of the cost of that exercise to be borne by advertising of the company’s products on those sites. At the moment, as the Minister will be aware, there is a pretty extensive charging regime of some £18 per search. That is a fairly significant disincentive unless the cost is to be paid by an individual who is aware of some unclaimed assets for him or his family.
I also want to put on the record, more broadly, that the Bill provides an opportunity to improve on the reunification process and the procedures for ensuring that dormant accounts go back, where possible, to the correct person. As is betrayed by his surname, many of Mr. Manzetti’s ancestors come from various parts of Europe, including Italy, Germany, France and the Czech Republic, and several accounts are unknown. That will apply not only to many of my constituents but to those of hon. Members throughout the country. The question is whether enough work is being done by banks and building societies. Where are the incentives to ensure that a proper job is done instead of merely making “all reasonable efforts”?
In her letter, which is dated 10 August, the erstwhile Economic Secretary mentioned
“tracing systems being made more user-friendly.”
Can the Minister give some indication as to the nature of those tracing systems and how they can be more user-friendly in a world where people will increasingly access websites through the internet? What process will be put in place to ensure that we do not have a system suitable only for 2008 that becomes defunct in the light of new technology in the years and decades ahead? Is there a commitment from the Government, alongside the banks and building societies, to ensure that this information is kept up to date, as far as possible?
I thank you for your indulgence, Mr. Benton, in allowing me to stray slightly off the line, as I felt that the issues raised by my constituent could best be discussed under clause 11. I hope that the Minister is able to comment on them. I am happy, if need be, to forward the correspondence that was responded to by the then Economic Secretary, who is now Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the hon. Member for Burnley (Kitty Ussher).