Joint account
We’ll rename the account to your name only and you can continue to use it as normal. If you had a joint overdraft or other lending, this’ll be reviewed to check it still works for you.
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Bereavement guide
What to do when someone dies
Our Click & Notify service is quick & easy
We are sorry to hear about your loss. We want to make this as straightforward as possible for you. If you can, please let us know about your bereavement on our digital service rather than telephone or in branch. Our digital service is the quickest way and helps keep you and our colleagues safe and secure during the pandemic
Already registered?
If you’ve already registered with our digital service and have an existing notification with us, you can continue your progress here.
Bereavement checklist
Losing someone you love is difficult, and arranging all the formalities and paperwork can be confusing, so we’ve created a checklist to help you take those first steps:
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01
Register the death
Register the death within 5 days (8 days in Scotland). This includes weekends and bank holidays. Find out how to do this here.
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02
Arrange the funeral
If you don’t know how or where to get started when it comes to arranging the funeral, you can find a useful step by step guide on the gov.uk website.
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03
Use the Government’s 'Tell Us Once' service
This service will inform government bodies such as HMRC, Department for Work and Pensions, the Passport Office, the DVLA and the local Council. More information is available here.
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04
Managing their bills
To sort out their bills you need to contact their providers and will usually need to supply either a copy or extract of the death certificate. If they held bank accounts with more than one bank, you can use the Death Notification Service to let them know at the same time.
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05
Check if you can get bereavement benefits
If your husband, wife or civil partner died in the last 21 months, you may be able to get Bereavement Support Payment.
What happens once you notify us
Click buttons below to find out more
Sole account
If the account is only under your loved one’s name, we’ll stop any further communications to that account. It takes a short time to arrange this, so you might receive letters addressed to them in the meantime.
What happens with the account next?
We’ll freeze any accounts that are in our deceased customer’s name only. This is a good time to contact any utility providers and let them know that their bills won’t be paid from this account anymore.
We’ll then give you a personal reference number starting with 'NW'. Keep a note of this so our team can quickly answer any queries you might have.
The process
Settling your loved one’s estate can be difficult but we’re here to help make it as easy as possible for you.
- After we’ve frozen their account, we might need some extra documents so we can close the account and transfer any remaining balance.
- We’ll let you know either by email, SMS (if you’ve contacted us online) or letter (if you spoke to us over the phone of in branch).
- Once we let you know what documents are needed, please send us them as soon as possible. We aim to provide a response within 10 working days from receiving your documents.
Documents required
We will let you know if we need to see any of the following documents. If the death certificate is from outside the UK or is not in the English language, please click here for more information.
How we close the account
Depending on the size of the estate or the type of account we might have to send you an account closure instruction to sign. This should be signed by all the executors or next of kin.
You’ll either be sent a letter with the account closure instruction, or you’ll be notified on the Click & Notify service.
Our portal
Our portal
If you’ve used our Click & Notify service, then you can manage your notification through our portal by clicking here.
Email, text or letter
Depending on what channel you notified us on, you’ll either receive an update email, SMS or letter as we process your notification.
Reminders
You might get reminders from our Click & Notify service to upload documents if you haven’t already provided us with them.
Funeral invoice payment
You can use money from the deceased’s account to help with funeral costs
If you send or upload the final invoice on the funeral company’s headed paper, we’ll pay the funeral company directly. The fees will be paid in three to five working days.
Please note we are unable to make any reimbursement of funeral invoice that has already been paid.
We're here to help
You can get in touch with our dedicated team via webchat.
You can ask us any question you may have by clicking on the 'need help' button on the right hand side of the page.
You can also call us on 0800 161 5903.
Lines are open:
Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm
Estate administration
Our Estate Administration Service is provided by Hugh James Solicitors, and is available for a fee. With this service you will be assigned a dedicated case manager to make sure the terms of the will are carried out appropriately.
Contact our Estate Administration Service on 02920 391019 or Minicom on 0800 404 6161. Lines are open 8am - 6pm (Mon-Fri).
Find out more about our Estate Administration Service
Share end of life plans
Do your loved ones know your wishes if you fell ill or died? From your finances and funeral, to legal arrangements like wills and power of attorney, make, store and share your plans for the future with Plan Ahead, our free online estate planning tool.
Plan Ahead is designed for NatWest customers living in England and Wales, aged 18 and over, who are registered for Online Banking and have a valid UK mobile number.