He later received an email from a different employee which read: “I regret that you were misinformed earlier today about our policy on inheritance tax, which I loathe to acknowledge is becoming a trend in this case.”
When Nationwide refused to move his mother’s £16,441 into a interest-bearing account, Mr Pudney tried to lodge a complaint but staff never bothered to log it. The bank has now paid him £150 in compensation for this.
They then also told him they could not move his mother’s money, because the balances she held with them exceeded £50,000. Alongside the £16,400 earning no interest, she also had nearly £75,000 already in interest-bearing accounts.
A Nationwide spokesman said they were sorry to hear of the death of their customer’s mother, adding: “As the balances of her accounts exceed £50,000, they remain frozen until we receive the grant of probate. While we sympathise with her son’s situation, we are legally unable to act on his instructions until we can confirm he is the personal representative for his mother estate.”
In response, Mr Pudney said: “It’s not about the money. I haven’t earned it. It’s about banks picking and choosing their policies. This isn’t law.
“We’re also at a point in time where a family is suffering from emotional distress. I’ve been on the phone crying to companies over the past two months.”
The Telegraph understands that the Financial Conduct Authority does not have powers to standardise banks’ different limits before requiring probate – and that it is ultimately up to banks.
The Ministry of Justice says people are waiting more than nine weeks on average for a grant of probate. But in 2023, almost 1,500 families faced delays of a year or more, according to data obtained in a Freedom of Information request. Mr Pudney has been told his case could take six months.
Since May, grieving families have faced a 10pc increase in the cost of applying for a grant of probate. This is in spite of the fact the number of families waiting 21 to 23 months also leapt up by 65pc between 2020 and 2023.
Mr Pudney said: “We’re in limbo now. The revenue has no incentive to process these things quickly. And if you fail to pay within the first six months then the interest is ludicrous.”
