Bell says the third priority for NS&I is "institutional", with the bank being asked to address tracing issues alongside completing its "challenging" business transformation programme that was put in place in 2020.

The finance minister says that David Goldstone, the independent Chair of the Office for Value for Money, has been appointed to support the bank to bring the programme "back on track".

Bell then says he has appointed Sir Jim Harra to take over as interim chief executive of NS&I "from today".

"I want to make sure NS&I has the best leadership in place," he says, thanking the outgoing CEO Dax Harkins for his years of public service.

He says Harra will undertake a review over the next three months to investigate the background to the tracing issue.

Bell says NS&I has reviewed over 34m customer records, and it points to up to a maximum of some £470m in deposits - and around 37,500 customers - affected.

This number is likely to fall in future and represents less than 0.2% of NS&I's customers, he says, but "it is still far too many".

"It is right that NS&I is apologising today."

He says the government's priorities are now three-fold - first, that the causes of the tracing issues are addressed and a solution is found.

Second, is to reunite beneficiaries of late customers with "any funds that NS&I holds".

"These deposits belong to customers - returning them in no way presents an additional liability to the taxpayer".

He says the savings are "100% safe" - the issue is tracing, not the security of funds.

Bell now says additional staff has been brought on to help track and deliver the savings, including interesting.

Work will be done to ensure that "compensation where appropriate will be paid", he says, with the onus on the bank not customers.

Torsten Bell says on 18 December last year, NS&I notified the Treasury of a failure to trace the details of accounts of some customers who had passed away.

He says not all savings had been identified and passed onto beneficiaries "as they should've been".

He adds there have been historical challenges in the financial sector in this regard, but "what is now clear" is that NS&I and others did not act upon warnings to a degree expected by the government of its customers.

Pensions Minister Torsten Bell is now delivering a statement on NS&I in the House of Commons.

We'll bring you the key lines as we get them - or you can tap 'watch live' at the top of the page to follow along.

Image source, PA Media

• Pensions Minister Torsten Bell will address the Commons shortly about National Savings and Investment - a government agency that reports to the Treasury - after complaints from premium bonds holders
• One Essex man trying to arrange his late wife's finances says he was told to wait up to nine months for the issue to be resolved
• Another woman says it took five years to resolve her late father's premium bonds - and that "we were not entitled to wins that had been made in this time"
• The BBC understands that NS&I’s focus is likely to be on reuniting bereaved families with money it holds, rather than compensation
• About 37,000 NS&I customers are reported to be affected. NS&I's customers include 22 million holders of premium bonds - a savings account that doesn't pay interest, but that gives holders the chance of winning £1m every month
• You'll be able to watch the minister's statement live at the top of the page soon

James Kelly
BBC News

Image source, Tracy McGuire-Brown

Tracy McGuire-Brown from Newbury says it took NS&I three attempts to find the account for her late father.

The 61-year-old tells us: "It took me five years and a huge amount of distressing form filling, including sending the original will, original documents, all at my own expense to try and locate my deceased father’s premium bonds.

"We were told that, even though they took years to sort this out, at great distress to us, that we were not entitled to wins that had been made in this time.

"The final insult was this year when we finally received the monies: a letter stating it should be used to clear any debts my father had and be used towards funeral expenses. He had died five years earlier."

She says NS&I later sent her £150 for the expense of sending the original documents by post, adding that she would never invest with the bank given the "appalling" experience she endured.

Kevin Peachey
Cost of living correspondent

When somebody dies, their family can use the Tell Us Once scheme, external in order to inform various authorities ranging from HM Revenue and Customs to the local council.

But – in the same way as banks – NS&I is not part of the scheme, so families need to contact it directly.

There are various details required, and a tracing service for lost investments, external. Clearly, the efficiency of these services is now being called into question.

And lots of premium bond prizes remain unclaimed.

James Kelly
BBC News

Image source, Phil Fraser

Phil Fraser from Leeds says dealing with NS&I on behalf of his bereaved 86-year-old mother Ruth left him "so frustrated".

The 62-year-old told the BBC he'd had a "dreadful service" concerning his late father's premium bonds, and in the end submitted a letter of complaint.

"Multiple forms submitted, extremely long holds on phones, incomprehensible customer service reps, ridiculous rules about bereavement departments not accepting calls.

"Of all the financial institutions we dealt with regarding my late father's estate, they were the worst."

Kevin Peachey
Cost of living correspondent

The BBC understands that NS&I’s focus is likely to be on reuniting bereaved families with money it holds.

Compensation when things have gone wrong seems not to be at the top of the agenda.

That might not sit well with people who have told the BBC about the long, arduous and – at times – expensive pursuit of their late loved one’s funds.

It also raises questions over whether these may lead to compensation claims as a result.

People keep premium bonds for decades - it seems that has caused a problempublished at 11:16 GMT

11:16 GMT

Kevin Peachey
Cost of living correspondent

For many families, premium bonds have been part of their finances for decades – the kind of product bought young and kept for decades.

The attraction has been, in part, the security of these savings. A government-owned bank will not go bust. Hence, NS&I’s popularity at times of trouble, such as the financial crisis of 2008.

It seems that customer loyalty - and the length of time some of these accounts have been held for - has led NS&I to lose track and control of some of the details.

So bereaved families, as we are hearing, have faced huge difficulties trying to access those funds.

The controversy facing NS&I comes just weeks after a parliamentary committee criticised the institution, external over rising costs and delays to a project to modernise its systems.

The public accounts committee said NS&I was "over-confident about its ability to deliver the programme", the costs of which hit an estimated £3 billion in 2024, "with little evidence to support this confidence".

"It has no workable plan for it after five years, and no idea of its eventual cost," the committee said in a February report.

The committee said customers would be at risk if the programme, which began in 2020, was unsuccessful.

James Kelly
BBC News

Peter Attwell, 71, from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, is struggling to get help from NS&I while sorting out the financial affairs of his late brother, who died in early January without a valid will.

He says his 94-year-old mother, who has dementia, is the next of kin to his brother.

Attwell tells us: "She has no capacity and therefore cannot sign the paperwork. NS&I appear to be stalling.

"I was asked yesterday to phone back in two weeks as they are still dealing with post from mid-February.

"That will take it to three months since first contact. Completely unacceptable!"

Image source, Peter Attwell

James Kelly
BBC News

Kevin Jones from Harlow, Essex, has encountered problems with NS&I following the death of his wife last month.

The 68-year-old tells us: "My wife died on 17 February. I contacted NS&I after completing a bereavement form online and getting no confirmation.

"I was told that, unlike all the other financial institutions I'd been in contact with, they didn't acknowledge whether or not they had received the information.

"When I asked how long I should wait for the matter to be resolved, I was told between six and nine months."

When Jones queried long delays, he says he was told the savings bank was "short staffed".

Image source, Kevin Jones

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There have been a range of complaints about NS&I, many highlighted recently by the Daily Telegraph.

They include bereaved families "locked out" of their relatives' accounts - some for months, or even years.

On Wednesday, NS&I said: "We recognise that dealing with bereavement can be challenging and would like to apologise to anyone who has not received the customer service from NS&I that they should expect, particularly at such a sensitive time."

The BBC has approached NS&I for comment.

NS&I

• National Savings and Investments (NS&I) is a government-backed agency which serves more than 24 million people with a range of savings and investment offers
• Its customers include more than 22 million premium bonds holders
• It is an executive agency of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and is backed by the Treasury

Premium bonds

• Premium bonds are a savings product where, instead of earning interest, each £1 bond you hold is entered into a monthly prize draw

• In December 2025, more than £134bn was held in premium bonds - a £5bn increase over the year
• Millions of prizes are awarded each month, though some bondholders will win nothing
• Prizes range from £25 up to £1 million, and all winnings are tax free - but there is no guaranteed return

Image source, PA Media

A government-backed savings agency has been accused of a series of errors which could see it paying millions of pounds in compensation to customers.

About 37,000 customers of National Savings & Investments (NS&I) are thought to be affected by the issue, which includes bereaved families not receiving money they were entitled to, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Pensions Minister Torsten Bell is set to address MPs in the House of Commons on the topic this morning - you will be able to watch live on this page.

NS&I apologised on Wednesday to anyone who had not received the customer service they should expect from the bank.

Stay with us for the latest updates and analysis on this topic.