BANKS and building societies are calling for people with money sitting in dormant savings accounts to come forward and claim their money before the government gets its hands on it.

Halifax became the first big institution to launch a campaign aimed at finding customers who have £44m of savings languishing in unused accounts. It will send letters to the last known address of dormant-account customers and place adverts in the press and branches urging people to come forward.

Mike Regnier, head of savings at Halifax, said: “Our job is to reunite as many of our customers as possible with their cash. We are using every means at our disposal to do so — mailings, advertising and the internet. We are also employing search agents where appropriate.”

Other institutions are also looking to step up their search for lost customers.

Nationwide said: “We do have plans, but are not launching anything imminently. We are looking at a host of ways of reuniting people with their money. The main problem is that the contact details we have for these customers are often out of date.”

Banks and building societies do try to get in touch with customers who have money in inactive accounts, but often this tails off after five years or so — it varies depending on the institution.

However, the reason for the recent increase in activity is that the government wants to claim the money held in accounts that have been dormant for 15 years or more and use it to fund charitable and community projects.

Lesley McLeod at the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) said: “Our biggest concern is what happens if the Treasury takes the money and someone then comes to reclaim their savings.”

Gordon Brown first announced plans to claim the money in dormant accounts in 2004, but banks and building societies have warned that the move could be unlawful because customers retain the right to funds held in these accounts.

However, in the prebudget report last December the chancellor indicated that he planned to change the law and a further announcement on this is expected in next month’s budget.

The BBA has said that it will launch an industry-wide campaign aimed at reuniting consumers with their money if the government does go ahead with a scheme to claim these funds. The banks are worried that they will have to stump up the cash if a person comes to reclaim his or her money after it has been taken by the government — this is why they want people to act now before any such scheme is launched.

If you find a passbook for an old savings account you had forgotten about, you should take it along to a branch of the relevant bank or building society. If your address has changed you will need to take proof of your current address, such as a utility bill.

If you do not have a passbook but think you might still have money in an old account, you will need to fill in a form giving details of your current and past addresses. The bank or building society will then investigate and contact you if such an account does exist.

Many dormant accounts hold savings that belong to people who have died. If you find account details when sorting through the paperwork of a family member who has passed away, you will need to take a copy of the statutory declaration or probate form when you go to claim the money.