The Banking Code Compliance Committee (BCCC) has called on banks to keep a heightened focus on their management of deceased estates, after a review found that further work and commitment is needed to ensure improvements are working in practice.
In its report, Managing deceased estates: A follow-up review, the BCCC reviewed how 11 banks had responded to its recommendations for improving deceased estate management.
Eight of the 11 banks included in the review have taken steps to implement changes aligned to the BCCC’s 2023 recommendations, including improvements to systems, processes, product identification, monitoring arrangements and staff training.
Chair of the BCCC Sean Hughes said the follow-up review demonstrated the BCCC’s work had contributed to improvements across the industry.
“This follow-up reveals that most banks - but not all – have acted in response to the 2023 report. The majority appear to have taken the findings and recommendations seriously and implemented important changes,” Mr Hughes said.
“Managing a deceased estate can involve grief, financial pressure, uncertainty and unfamiliar legal or banking processes. When banks improve these processes, they reduce the risk of delays, confusion and unnecessary distress for representatives. They instil trust, which is core to their relationship with any customer.
“Banks need to ensure their processes are accurate, timely and easy to navigate. This is a matter of good customer service and central to meeting their commitments in the Banking Code of Practice.”
However, the BCCC’s follow-up review found that some banks continue to rely on manual processes, fragmented arrangements or underdeveloped monitoring and quality assurance. Three banks identified further work was required in key areas, including quality assurance frameworks, fee identification controls and staff training.
Mr Hughes said banks with unresolved weaknesses had been on notice for long enough and they should expect more formal and targeted engagement from the BCCC.
“These are not new issues, nor are they particularly complicated or expensive to repair,” Mr Hughes said.
“We made clear recommendations to the industry and gave banks ample time to review their practices. If gaps still remain, we may consider further investigation and formal action.
“Banks with deficiencies in their estate practices must address these as a priority. Every bank must be able to show that its processes for managing deceased estates work in practice. That means being able to identify relevant products, act within required timeframes, communicate clearly and compassionately, maintain effective records, and monitor whether the process is operating as intended.”
Following its 2023 inquiry, the BCCC undertook targeted investigations into three banks for non-compliance with Code commitments regarding deceased estates. All three banks were sanctioned for serious and systemic non-compliance, with ANZ and Bank of Queensland subject to naming sanctions.
The BCCC will continue to monitor management of deceased estates and may initiate targeted investigative activities into banks that fail to address weaknesses with their deceased estate management processes and practices.
About us:
The purpose of the BCCC is to monitor and drive best practice Code compliance.
To do this, it:
- examines banks’ practices
- identifies current and emerging industry-wide problems
- recommends improvements to bank practices
- sanctions banks for serious compliance failures, and
- consults and keeps stakeholders and the public informed.
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