What you need to know about banks and power of attorney and executorship
Having been through the process of trying to work with banks, building societies and other financial institutions as attorneys on behalf of others and executors of wills, our practical experience here at When They Get Older is that this is an unnecessarily difficult process just at a time when you need to move quickly and easily to manage finances and estates effectively, Many going through this process will also be feeling anxiety or grief.
It’s good to know that the UK Financial Conduct Authority has looked at where financial institutions are following good practice, and where they could improve.
The overall message is that while the situation is improving, the communication between bank and customer is still not perfect. With this knowledge, attorneys and executors can be more confident about asking for services that may be available. At the least, forewarned is forearmed, so you can be aware of the possible pitfalls in managing and settling a loved one’s financial affairs.
Here’s what the FCA review found.
Applying policies and procedures
Many firms now have clear policies and procedures available to staff to help them respond to customers in vulnerable circumstances. Where complex cases may not fit standard guidelines, some firms have instigated procedures such as forums to escalate cases and deliver successful outcomes.
That’s all to the good. However, it seems that some staff are still unclear about what actions to take and what support to give in an emergency, such as when a customer’s capacity suddenly changes or when funds are urgently needed, Staff not knowing what to do adds to the stress of the situation, and the review points out that would be helpful to make the guidance here clearer, especially for employees who probably haven’t experienced these circumstances very frequently.
There is also the vexed question of balancing the need to safeguard customers from fraud and financial abuse, against the need for customers and their representatives to make sure bills are paid, and currently there do seem to be issues with long periods where potential bill payers are unable to access funds to pay essential bills.
Identifying and responding to vulnerable customers
Firms are asked to assist frontline staff with identifying potential vulnerable customers and responding to their needs. Some firms have set up systems to accomplish this, and use centralised systems to share the information to staff across business areas. This is intended to minimise the number of times customers have to give the same information, and reduce distress. Some firms have gone as far as using AI to identify when a customer says something that could indicate potential characteristics of vulnerability.
While these are all positive steps, it would seem that not all staff are using the available procedures – failing to check already available information for example.
In some bereavement and power of attorney cases, staff don’t always acknowledge that customer are noticeably upset, and therefore don’t respond as sensitively as they might.
Customer journeys: power of attorney and bereavement
The review found that firms are generally thoughtful about how they can adapt their bereavement/PoA customer journey to make them as straightforward and flexible as possible.
Most firms now have dedicated bereavement teams. One firm is offering video links to specialists, and another has a dedicated phone line for PoA queries.
There is room for improvement:
- App-based banking and online banking are often not available for attorneys to use. The review believes access could be expanded if the firms would commit some resources to it.
- Attorneys and executors often have to repeat information to different staff members, or their cases are delayed or dropped altogether as the details are ‘lost’ in the system.
What now?
The FCA has written to all the firms in the review, highlighting its findings and expected next steps to improve service in these areas.
Photo by Steve DiMatteo on Unsplash
