Dissolved company and frozen bank account

[JohnnyBall]

I'm currently scratching my head over an issue with NatWest. For a number of reasons, my company was dissolved for not filing accounts just before Xmas. I was expecting this eventually, but it still took me a little by surprise as all the advisory correspondence seemed to get stuck in the Xmas post and didn't arrive until New Year.

 

This meant the company accounts with NatWest were frozen - the first I knew was when I couldn't log in online or use the debit card. I understand this is the process, and even though there was a balance of a few hundred quid in there, I don't really have any grounds for complaint on that score.

 

However, a week or so after the account was frozen, two of my former clients mistakenly sent their rent payments by standing order to the old company, instead of to the management company that had taken over. NatWest were happy to take these payments of course, and I've got no way of recovering the money - more to the point, nor do the clients, who are now in rent arrears.

 

NatWest say the account is "frozen" but not closed - ie money can flow in but not out, and when they finally enact the process of closing the account, the balance is forwarded to the Treasury Solicitor. I'm struggling to understand how the account can be in this kind of limbo - either it's open or it's closed, surely? The Treasury Solicitor publishes (rather vague) guidelines on what banks should do in this situation - http://www.bonavacantia.gov.uk/output/BVC16-Banks-and-other-Financial-Institutions-about-Cash-Balances-belonging-to-dissolved-companies.aspx

 

My reading of this is the account should be closed immediately the bank learns of the dissolution of the company, instead of this kind-of half-closed status. I don't understand the legal basis on which they can accept payments to a non-existent company that's already been dissolved.

 

Does anyone have any insight / experience of this situation? I don't even want the money myself, I just want to get the payments reversed to help a couple of small businesses now stuffed on their rent bills. I can - and probably will - apply for ex gratia payment from the Treasury Solicitor, but this will take months. And it doesn't change the fact that NatWest seem to be acting improperly here.