Banks & building societies

If your bank or building society fails and can’t pay back your money, FSCS can automatically pay you compensation. Your bank or building society must be authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority - check this on the Financial Services Register.

Banks and building societies

If the firm failed after 1 Jan 2017

If you hold money with a UK-authorised bank, building society or credit union that fails, we’ll automatically compensate you.

up to £85,000 per eligible person, per bank, building society or credit union.
up to £170,000 for joint accounts.

We protect certain qualifying temporary high balances up to £1 million for six months from when the amount was first deposited.

You don’t need to do anything – FSCS will compensate you automatically.

You can easily see how much of your money is protected by using our bank & savings protection checker.

Limitations

Where you hold your money could affect how much compensation you’re entitled to. If you have money in multiple accounts with banks that are part of the same banking group (and share a banking licence) we have to treat them as one bank. This means that our compensation limit applies to the total amount you hold across all these accounts, not to each separate account.

For our compensation limit to apply to each individual account, you’d need to hold money with different banks that don’t share a licence. You can search the financial services register on the Financial Conduct Authority’s website to see which banks share a licence or check the lists of banking and building society brands on the Bank of England's website.

You can easily see how much of your money is protected by using our bank & savings protection checker. Click the button to get started.

Check you’re protected

How long will it take?

FSCS will pay compensation within seven working days of a bank or building society failing. You don't need to do anything, FSCS will compensate you automatically. More complex cases, including temporary high balance claims, will take longer and you'll need to contact us to request an application form.

I've got a small business account and a personal account with the same bank. Are both accounts covered up to £85,000?

If your business is a separate legal entity, e.g., a limited company or LLP, you could claim up to £85,000 for each account. If you’re a sole trader (e.g., Mr Smith trading as Smith Motors) you wouldn’t be entitled to two separate claims – you could claim up to £85,000 in total.

Although joint account holders are usually entitled to make separate deposit claims for £85,000 each, if the joint account holders hold the account as partners in a business, then the business partnership is only entitled to a single claim of £85,000 (not one claim per business partner).

See our small businesses & limited companies page for more information.

Visit our charities page for information about FSCS protection for deposits made by charities.

Are deposits covered if they're held in a client account or by a nominee company?

Generally yes, but see our answer on whether we cover deposits held in client accounts for limits and requirements.

I used a savings marketplace/cash platform to deposit my money in multiple accounts with different banks. How long will my claim take?

Savings marketplace, cash platform, savings service – this type of financial company (also known as a deposits aggregator) spreads your money across multiple accounts with different banks. See this article for more details.

Payment terms

Find the terms of payment and consent to FSCS use of your personal data in our Terms and Conditions section.