NS&I has set out the rules for investing in Premium Bonds after a question from someone who wanted to open an account on someone else’s behalf.
A person contacted the provider over X to ask: “I am Power of Attorney for my mum who is now in a care home due to Alzheimer’s.
“I have had to sell her house to pay for her care. I would like to know if I am able to open a Premium Bond account in her name in which to deposit some of the proceeds from her house sale.”
There are some key benefits of Premium Bonds as a savings option that may make attract a person in this situation.
All NS&I savings are Government backed meaning any holdings are secure. You can also cash in your Bonds at any time if you want to use the funds for something else.
NS&I responded to the person to say “this would be possible” and proceeded to ask for more information.
A representative said: “So we can advise you further, could you tell us if your mum has any savings with us already, and if so, is the Power of Attorney registered on our system for them?”
The person said that as far as they knew, their mum did not have any savings with NS&I. They explained: “There was no evidence when I was sorting through all her paperwork. So the Power of Attorney is not registered with you.”
In response, NS&I explained the paperwork they would need to fill in. They said: “In that case, we’d need you to complete a Premium Bond application form in her details, attaching either a certified or original copy of the Power of Attorney document, or if the Power of Attorney was established on or after 2016, you can generate a Power of Attorney access c ode to send instead.
“Please also send a cover letter with your name, address, date of birth, and signature on it (if you have savings with us, please also include your NS&I Number), and a cheque for the amount you wish to invest.
“Once this has been done, please send it to us at NS&I, Sunderland SR43 2SB. I will link the form below.”
They included a link to this form entitled ‘ Application to buy Premium Bonds for yourself or your child under 16′.
To fill in the form, you have to provide details of who the Bonds are for, including their name, address and city and country of birth.
The form includes a box you can cross so that any winnings in the monthly prize draw are automatically used to buy more Bonds, so increasing your chances of winning again.
