The chief of National Savings and Investments has been forced out after the company allegedly shortchanged bereaved families. Dax Harkins was dismissed as CEO of NS&I – a state-owned savings bank – after it reportedly lost track of dead customers’ investments and withheld Premium Bonds.
Pensions minister Torsten Bell MP told the House of Commons that 34million customer records had been reviewed, which suggested up to a maximum of around 37,500 customers with up to £476million in deposits had been affected. The bank is planning to reimburse the beneficiaries of now dead savers whose money was held back, it is understood.
Mr Bell said tens of thousands of people had been denied hundreds of millions in savings owed to them by NS&I. Mr Harkins was appointed as the bank’s boss in 2023. He started working for the organisation in its sales department.
He received about £325,000 in 2025 – £190,000 of which in salary.
There was also a bonus of £25,000 and £110,000 in pension benefits, according to records cited by The Telegraph.
Sir Mel Stride, Conservative shadow chancellor, told the newspaper that the situation was a “shocking failure”.
He added: “Heads have rightly rolled, but serious questions remain about how this was allowed to happen and why it took so long to act.
“The Government must ensure every penny is repaid swiftly and guarantee taxpayers are not left footing the bill for yet another public sector fiasco.”
The bank said: “We recognise that dealing with bereavement can be challenging and would like to apologise to anyone who has not received the customer service from NS&I that they should expect, particularly at such a sensitive time.”
NS&I offers a range of savings and investments to more than 24million customers, including more than 22million Premium Bonds holders.
Backed by HM Treasury, it was formerly known as the Post Office Savings Bank and National Savings.
