Joint accounts- one deceased

camz09

Hi there. I have a question regarding my deceased sister's joint bank account with her boyfriend. She left me her bank account details before she passed, (and the bank statement on paper just arrived in the post) which allowed me to go online and see her account. It appears that she was credited with her most recent salary from her job just a few days ago and her boyfriend, who has left Ireland to the UK a mere week after her burial (he may have his reasons), took money several times from it. I anticipate some controversy, if any, from this post but my parents are wondering if there's anything we can do about it ( use the money to pay for the funeral expenses instead of the boyfriend, who haven't even attempted to shoulder any of it). My sister died in tragic circumstances, and part of me thinks the pain of it could be exacerbated by dealing with this thing. We would obviously not pursue any action, if we actually can do anything about it, if it's not really worth all the hassle, given our bereavement. Any advice or comment? (will put on a thick skin now)...

unclebill98

Firstly, sorry for you loss.

While the money was earned by your sister the account is a joint account and there fore the remaining funds go to the existing account holder.

If your sister left a will there may be something you can do but at the moment there is nothing you can do to stop the funds being taken from any joint accounts.

If there is a sole account then yes you can stop more money being taken. Go to the bank, any branch and notify them, even a phone call will do and then submit death cert when you get it,

unclebill98

Just to add, it's normal to give the band the funeral bill to pay funds from the deceased person account, however being that the husband is the next of kin he may have already contacted the bank about this.

Also, don't forget the bereavement grant if the husband is not applying for it.