Child bank account - what happens at 18?

[frogis]

Wondering if anyone can let me know how bank accounts opened for their children actually work - I can’t quite find the information clearly enough to make a decision.

When a child reaches 18, do banks require the account signed over to them immediately, so the child would definitely know about the money they now have access to?
Lots of friends with bank accounts for their kids just say “if they’re not sensible enough I won’t tell them about it!” but it seems that isn’t really an option when the money legally becomes the child’s?

I think some just automatically default to the child/now adult. You'd need to check the precise terms for each. I think the Government ones do - I think they notify the young person directly.

DC’s child trust wrote to him. I tried to intercept the letters, as he has ASD/ADHD, he spent £600 in 4 months on nothing from his birthday money account once he was old enough to figure out he could go in and withdraw cash without us.

His trust account keep asking for photo ID for complete his account set up from junior isa to adult Isa.

Dd's got switched to a student account at one point- possibly because a university was paying her.
They were paying her because she had a job. And wasn't a student.

She could access it all from much earlier though like 13.

Thanks, looks like notifying the child directly is fairly common. It’s weighing up the better interest rates on the child ISAs etc now against the risk of them frittering some of it away in 18 years!

If you don't want them to have access and you haven't opened the account yet, you could save it in your name or have a trust established.

There have been a few threads recently about mothers of 18 year old who were really worried about this money being frittered. Might be worth an advance search.

Yes, no specific accounts open yet and I think saving in my name for now is the way. Seems even though most say they won’t tell their children when they get to 18, they might not be able to avoid it if the bank contacts them directly.

There are pros and cons to saving in your own name - while it means you retain control over when the child has access to the money, it means that the money is still technically yours so if in future you become bankrupt, are assessed for means tested benefits etc, that money would be counted as your savings so could have to be used to pay off your debts/ affect the amount of benefits you may receive. Just something to bear in mind.

My son has one of those government savings accounts they gave them when they were born. It is with nationwide. It wasn't exactly a secret but when he opened up a nationwide current account under his own name the savings account showed in his list of accounts when he logged in online!
He has some money in Halifax that is a secret for when he is 17 (currently younger) and wants to open up another current account for different purposes so I'll steer him to a different bank incase it happens again!