A parent was unable to access £20,000 held in NatWest First Saver accounts for her children after her mother, who had set them up, developed advanced Alzheimer’s disease. Despite holding financial power of attorney, the parent received conflicting advice and had to take out a loan to cover her daughter’s university costs, highlighting difficulties accessing children’s funds when an account trustee loses mental capacity.

NatWest admitted that “lack of colleague awareness” about its complex procedures caused the delays, which lasted almost a year and involved staff in both call centres and branches. The children have now been given access to their money, and NatWest has paid compensation; the bank said it would use the case to improve its processes and training.