DRN-5992616

The complaint Mrs W is unhappy that Santander UK Plc has failed to trace money she believes is still held in a passbook account. What happened Mrs W opened a passbook account with a predecessor business that was later acquired by Santander. She continues to hold the uncancelled passbook, which shows the account was opened in her name with an initial payment-in by cheque in January 1991. The last entry in the passbook is a cheque payment dated March 2004, bringing the account balance to four-figures. In August 2025, Mrs W asked Santander about the money shown in the passbook. It told her the account had been closed at her local branch in August 2017 and that the balance (around £80) had been paid out in cash over the counter. Mrs W has no recollection of this and says she has reason to believe it is not something she would’ve done at the time. As she was unable to resolve matters directly with Santander, she brought her complaint to this service. Our investigator reviewed the complaint but concluded that Santander had acted in line with its procedures when closing the account and didn’t recommend upholding the complaint. Mrs W disagreed with the investigator’s findings and, as agreement could not be reached, the case was passed to me for a decision. What I’ve decided – and why I’ve considered all the available evidence and arguments to decide what’s fair and reasonable in the circumstances of this complaint. I appreciate that this is a frustrating situation for Mrs W. However, having carefully considered everything, I agree with the conclusion reached by our investigator, and for largely the same reasons. The central issue in Mrs W’s complaint is that she believes Santander should repay the balance shown in her passbook. So I've made this the main focus of my decision. My role is to determine whether Santander treated Mrs W fairly and reasonably overall. In doing so, I must consider the evidence provided by both parties and reach an independent decision based on the balance of probabilities - that is, what is more likely than not. Mrs W relies on the passbook as evidence that there’s still money in the account. She also says she has no recollection of making withdrawals that would have reduced the balance to around £80, nor of withdrawing that amount and closing the account. She does not believe this is something she would have done at the time Santander says the account was closed.

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I don’t doubt that Mrs W is certain about what she’s told us. But memory can be unreliable, particularly given that there has been no activity recorded in the passbook for over 20 years and Santander’s records show the last account activity was almost 9 years ago. Santander has provided a copy of a letter dated 18 August 2017, sent to Mrs W’s correct address at the time, warning that the account would become dormant unless she made contact within a month. The information available shows that the account was subsequently closed a couple of weeks later at her local branch, where it had originally been opened. On balance, it seems likely the closure was prompted by this letter and that Mrs W may simply no longer recall the events. Given the circumstances she was experiencing at the time, I can understand why this matter may not have been her main priority and why she might not remember the detail. The uncancelled passbook alone is not sufficient evidence that funds remained in the account or that the account was not closed by Mrs W. Santander explained that account holders could make transactions from their account without the passbook if they provided appropriate identification, and I accept this. I am aware that this isn’t an unusual practice for financial businesses who operate passbook accounts. Mrs W raised concerns about discrepancies in Santander’s records, including the timing of the address change. However, Santander’s records simply show the change of address taking effect from the date Mrs W moved. It seems likely she informed Santander in advance of the move, having also arranged for her post to be redirected from that date. The fact that Santander updated customer records in 2018 does not mean the passbook account must still have been open at that time. Financial businesses are not required to retain records indefinitely, and data-protection requirements mean they should not hold information longer than necessary. The absence of further records does not, in itself, support a conclusion that Santander still holds Mrs W’s money. Taking all the evidence into account, I think it is more likely than not that the balance shown in the passbook was withdrawn over time, and that the remaining balance was paid out when the account was closed on 30 August 2017. The mini-statement shows that £0.03 interest credited to the account was included in the £80.69 withdrawn at closure. Although the closing account statement for the period from 4 October 2016 to 30 August 2017 presents this information differently, I do not think this materially affects the position. It is most likely a result of how Santander’s systems ordered the information, making it appear that the interest was added separately when it had already been included in the closing balance. So this apparent discrepancy doesn’t change the outcome of the complaint. I recognise this is not the outcome Mrs W was hoping for. However, to uphold her complaint I would need to find that Santander made an error or acted unfairly or unreasonably, resulting in detriment to her. Having carefully considered all the information provided, I have not seen sufficient evidence to support that conclusion. I hope that explaining matters in this way helps Mrs W understand how I have reached my conclusion, and reassures her that her complaint has been given full and careful consideration.

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My final decision My final decision is that I do not uphold this complaint. Under the rules of the Financial Ombudsman Service, I’m required to ask Mrs W to accept or reject my decision before 25 May 2026. Susan Webb Ombudsman

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