Government announces £150M release of dormant asset funding in response to Covid-19

Following the Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden’s announcement earlier today, we are pleased to have been able to facilitate the release of £150m from the Dormant Assets Scheme and provide a much-needed injection of funds to front-line charities.

As the regulated operator of the scheme, Reclaim Fund Ltd (RFL) has worked closely with government to accelerate distributions for this year after careful consideration by the RFL Board to ensure this is done prudently and in line with consumer protections.

The result is that £150m will be immediately available for the scheme’s legislated distributor – The National Lottery Community Fund – to be drawn down to benefit organisations across the UK.

Chief Executive, Adrian Smith said:

‘We sincerely hope the scale and timing of this year’s distribution of dormant asset funds will help front-line charitable organisations to support many people across the UK in the face of unprecedented challenges presented by Covid-19.

In making these funds immediately available, we continue to act in a way that maintains our core commitment to dormant account holders – that they can reclaim their money in full at any point and be restored to the same financial position as if their account had never become dormant.’

The Dormant Assets Scheme is a financial services industry initiative supported by the UK Government. It was established by the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008 (the Act). The Act enables voluntarily participating banks and building societies to transfer funds from dormant accounts (after 15 years of dormancy). RFL ensures sufficient funds are available to guarantee full restitution in perpetuity, providing consumers with the confidence that they may reclaim their money at any point with no time limit. The surplus is channelled to good causes and since March 2011, RFL has made over £745m available to benefit charitable organisations across the UK.