Premium Bonds After Death: How to Claim and What Happens to Prizes

Premium Bonds are one of the UK's most popular savings products, with over 24 million holders. When a holder dies, the Bonds do not simply disappear — they remain active in the prize draw for up to a year, and the full face value must be claimed for the estate. Many families are unaware of this 12-month window, and miss out on prizes the deceased's Bonds may still be winning.

Premium Bonds continue to be prize-eligible for 12 months

This is the fact that surprises families most. NS&I rules allow Premium Bonds to remain in the monthly prize draw for 12 calendar months after the date of the holder's death. This means if your relative died in March, their Bonds could still win prizes in draws held through to the following February.

Any prizes won during this period are held by NS&I and added to the value of the Bonds when you make your claim. They are treated as part of the estate. After 12 months, the Bonds are removed from the draw automatically.

You are not required to wait 12 months before claiming. You can request payment at any time after death — but if you do so within the 12-month window, the Bonds are cashed in and removed from future draws. It is worth considering whether to claim early or wait and potentially accumulate further prizes, particularly if the holding is large.

How to notify NS&I and the evidence required

The executor (or administrator if there is no will) should notify NS&I as soon as possible after death. You can do this by post, by calling NS&I's bereavement line, or by visiting a Post Office in some circumstances.

You will need to provide the following:

• The deceased's full name, date of birth, and date of death
• Their NS&I holder's number (found on Bond certificates, prize cheques, or NS&I correspondence)
• A certified copy of the death certificate
• If the holding exceeds £5,000: the original grant of probate or letters of administration
• Your own identification and proof of your authority to act (will, grant of probate, or statutory declaration)

NS&I will send you a claim form once they have received your initial notification. Complete this and return it with the required documents. Do not send original Bond certificates — NS&I keeps records electronically and certificates are not needed.

The probate threshold: NS&I's £5,000 rule

NS&I applies its own threshold for when probate is required. If the total value of the deceased's NS&I holdings (including Premium Bonds, Investment Accounts, Direct ISAs, and any other NS&I products combined) is £5,000 or less, NS&I will normally pay the estate without requiring a grant of probate or letters of administration.

This threshold applies per person, not per product. So if the deceased held £3,000 in Premium Bonds and £3,000 in an NS&I Direct ISA, the combined holding of £6,000 exceeds the threshold and probate would be required.

For small estates where the only significant asset is a modest Premium Bond holding under £5,000, it may be possible to claim the Bonds and other NS&I products without applying for probate at all. NS&I will instead require a statutory declaration from the executor or next of kin.

Claiming as executor versus next of kin without a will

If the deceased left a valid will, the executor named in it has the authority to claim Premium Bonds and other NS&I products. For holdings under £5,000, the executor can usually claim using a certified copy of the will and the death certificate, without needing to obtain probate first.

If there is no will (the estate is intestate), the next of kin must apply to the Probate Registry for letters of administration before they can legally act as administrator of the estate. NS&I will require these letters of administration for holdings over £5,000, just as they would require a grant of probate for an estate with a will.

For small NS&I holdings under the £5,000 threshold where no probate has been obtained, NS&I may accept a statutory declaration — a formal sworn statement about your relationship to the deceased and your entitlement to act. A solicitor or commissioner for oaths can prepare this for a small fee (typically £5 to £20).

Unclaimed prizes: what happens if a prize was won before death

NS&I makes monthly prize payments by bank transfer or cheque. If the deceased won a prize shortly before death, or if prize cheques were received but not banked, the prize amount may not have been collected.

When you make your claim, NS&I will automatically check their records and include any unclaimed prizes in the total amount payable to the estate. You do not need to request this separately.

NS&I retains records of uncashed prize warrants (cheques) for up to 18 months. Any prizes won during the 12-month post-death prize eligibility period are also held and included in the final payment.

Distributing the Bond value to beneficiaries

Once NS&I has processed the claim and verified the documents, they will pay the Bond value (plus any unclaimed prizes) directly to the estate. Payment is typically made by bank transfer to the executor's estate account, or by cheque payable to the executor.

The proceeds form part of the residuary estate and are distributed to beneficiaries in accordance with the will (or intestacy rules if there is no will). There is no inheritance tax relief specifically for Premium Bonds — they are treated as a straightforward cash asset of the estate.

Premium Bonds cannot be transferred to a beneficiary's name. They can only be redeemed for cash. If a beneficiary wishes to hold Premium Bonds themselves, they must purchase new Bonds in their own name using the cash they receive from the estate.

Processing times vary, but NS&I typically aims to process straightforward claims within 10 working days of receiving all required documents.

Finding a Premium Bond holder number

If you cannot find the deceased's NS&I holder number, NS&I can trace accounts using the deceased's full name, date of birth, and address. Contact NS&I directly and explain the situation — they have a dedicated bereavement team trained to assist families in exactly this situation.

You can also use the NS&I online tracing service at nsandi.com if you know the deceased's personal details. Alternatively, look through the deceased's paperwork for:

• NS&I prize cheques or bank transfer notifications
• Annual statements from NS&I
• Bond certificates (older-style paper certificates)
• Emails from NS&I confirming prize wins or purchases
• Bank statements showing payments to or from NS&I