What to do if…
your bank account is being closed and you need to move your money fast

What to do now

1. Confirm the notice is real before moving money.
   Open your banking app directly, type the bank’s website address yourself, or call the number on your bank card. Do not use contact details in the notice until the bank has confirmed it.

2. Ask the bank for the practical details and write them down.
   Ask:

   • the exact closure date and time, if they can give one
   • whether access could be restricted before that date
   • how any remaining balance will be returned after closure
   • what happens to pending card payments, Direct Debits, standing orders, and any overdraft
   • whether any short extension or temporary access arrangement is possible so essential payments can be moved

3. Open a replacement account now.
   Apply for a standard current account if you can. If you are refused, have poor credit, are overdrawn, or need a simpler emergency option, ask about a fee-free basic bank account so wages, benefits, pensions, Direct Debits, and standing orders can still be handled.

4. Move the most urgent payment details first.
   Update the account details for:

   • salary, benefits, pension, maintenance, student finance, or any regular income
   • rent or mortgage
   • council tax
   • energy, water, phone, internet, insurance, childcare, and essential loan repayments

5. Move enough usable money to function safely.
   Once the new account is open and you have confirmed the notice is genuine, transfer enough for the next few weeks of essentials. Keep screenshots or receipts for transfers, and keep a note of anything still pending on the old account.

6. Use the Current Account Switch Service if there is enough time and both accounts are eligible.
   The service is intended for a full current-account switch. It usually closes the old account, moves the balance and regular payments, and redirects payments sent to the old account. You must usually allow at least 7 working days, and the switch date cannot be a weekend or Bank Holiday. During that 7-working-day window, set up any new payments on the new account, not the old one.

7. If there is not enough time for a full switch, do a manual emergency move.
   Transfer money yourself, then recreate the essential standing orders and Direct Debits on the new account. For Direct Debits, contact the organisation you pay and ask whether the next payment will come from the old account or the new one. If a bill is due immediately, make a one-off payment only after checking it will not also be collected automatically.

8. Save records before access changes.
   Download or save recent statements, the closure notice, secure messages about the closure, payee details, standing-order details, Direct Debit lists, proof of balance, and transfer confirmations.

9. Watch the old account until it closes.
   Check daily for pending card payments, returned Direct Debits, incoming payments, fees, or overdraft changes. If money arrives in the old account after you have moved, ask the bank or the payer how it will be redirected or returned.

10. Complain separately if you think the closure is wrong or unfair.
    First make a brief written complaint to the bank with dates, what happened, and what you need. If you are unhappy with the final response, or the bank does not respond within the relevant complaint deadline, you can usually ask the Financial Ombudsman Service to look at it. Account-closure complaints are usually an 8-week response issue, but some payment-services, charge, or notice-period complaints can have shorter response times.