MILLIONS of Premium Bond customers could stop being eligible to receive prizes due to a little-known rule.
More than 24million people currently hold the bonds with National Savings & Investments (NS&I), which enter you into a monthly prize draw where you could win up to £1 million.
NS&I explained the rules in response to a query from a customer on social media website X (formerly Twitter).
The premium bond-holder asked: “What happens to Premium Bonds one year after the holder’s death if probate hasn’t been obtained?”
Speaking from experience they added: “We have informed you of the death and the bonds are currently still gaining prizes but frozen. The holding is above the £5,000 figure.”
In response NS&I said: “When a Premium Bonds holder dies, they are only eligible to earn prizes on the account up to a year after the date of death.
“After this point, if the Grant of Probate has not yet been obtained, we will still hold the funds but no more prizes can be won on the holding.”
A Grant of probate is a vital legal document which gives loved ones the power to deal with their late loved one’s affairs.
Typically it takes around 12 weeks for probate to be approved but in more complicated cases it can take more than a year for the documents to come through.
If an NS&I customer dies then Premium Bonds cannot be inherited or transferred to another person.
But the bonds can remain in the monthly Premium Bond prize draws for up to 12 months after their owner passed away.
After a year has passed the value of the Premium Bonds will be repaid to the deceased’s estate, along with any prize money they have won.
The person looking after the deceased’s finances should tell NS&I that they want the Premium Bonds to stay in the draw when they complete a “bereaved claims” form.
This is the form needed to access any savings held with NS&I after a customer has passed away.
NS&I will hold on to any prizes won until a bereavement claim is made.
After this point the prizes will be issued.
Premium Bonds have long been popular with savers since they were first launched in April 1956.
More than 24 million people currently hold the bonds, which do not offer interest but instead enter you into a monthly prize draw where up to £1 million is up for grabs.
Bond-holders should win on an ad-hoc basis each year, giving them a prize rate equivalent to around 4.4% interest on their nest egg.
However, there is no guarantee that you will win.
You can pay in anything between £25 and £50,000 into the account but the more bonds you have the greater your chance of winning.
Any Premium Bond numbers that go over the £50,000 limit are not eligible to win prizes.
The current odds stand at 21,000 to one but the prize rate can go up or down at any time.
Prizes also vary but there’s usually more than one million £25 prize winners.
Any prizes won will be paid by prize cheque after that draw to the person responsible for dealing with the money and property of the person who has passed away.
Prizes cannot be paid electronically or as a lump sum at the end of the year.
Regardless of whether probate has been obtained or not, Premium Bonds are eligible for prize draws up to one year after a person has passed away.
If your address and contact number are not up to date then you may not be notified by NS&I that you have won a prize.
This can happen if you have moved house and have not told NS&I or if you get a new phone number.
Letters from NS&I to say that you have won can also go missing in the most, meaning you never receive the good news.
Meanwhile, if you have not updated your bank or building society account then your winnings cannot be paid straight into it.
To change this simply log into your account using your NS&I number and password then click on your profile and select “Prize options”.
The fastest way to check if you are due a prize is to download NS&I’s Prize Checker App.
Once it has downloaded you simply enter your NS&I number to find out if you have won.
You can also use the prize checker on the NS&I website to see if you have bagged a prize this month, in the previous six draws or if you have an older prize you have not claimed.
If you think you may have savings with NS&I but no longer have the details then you can use NS&I’s tracing service to find your account.
All you need to do is download and print a paper form from the NS&I website and send it to the company.
Meanwhile, if you are registered for NS&I’s online and telephone service then you can call the company on 08085 007 007.
There is no time limit in which you need to claim your winnings.
IF you think you might have an unclaimed prize, the best way to check depends on what info you have about your Premium Bond account.
You’ll have been given both a Premium Bond holder’s number and a National Savings and Investments number.
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