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NS&I boss replaced as savers left waiting for millions of pounds
NS&I will review a tracing failure affecting up to 37,500 customers and £476 million in unpaid savings, with compensation and operational reforms planned.
- On Thursday, Pensions Minister Torsten Bell announced that Dax Harkins resigned as CEO of Treasury-owned National Savings & Investments, with Sir Jim Harra, former boss of HM Revenue & Customs, appointed to "provide a fresh start."
- The leadership change follows operational failures affecting up to 37,500 customers and up to £476 million of savings over 17 years. Bell said "not all savings were identified and paid to the beneficiaries of their estates as they should" have been.
- A report by The PAC last month blamed management, including Harkins, for instilling a "good news culture" and being "vague on how it holds them to account." Project Rainbow modernization costs reached £3 billion by 2024, nearly double its original £1.7 billion budget.
- NS&I has hired 100 extra staff to help bereaved families, while Treasury officials work to determine exact compensation amounts for affected customers. Bell said returning money would not create additional taxpayer liabilities.
- Sir Jim Harra will undertake a three-month review into the tracing problem and lessons to be learned. The bank serves more than 24 million people, making the failures' scope significant for the broader savings market.
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Total News Sources9
Leaning Left2Leaning Right3Center2Last UpdatedBias Distribution43% Right
Bias Distribution
- 43% of the sources lean Right
43% Right
L 29%
C 28%
R 43%
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