Starling Bank is a digital-only bank – no branches, but a dedicated Bereavement Team reachable by phone, email, or post. When you notify them of a death, they freeze the account immediately and guide you through each step. This guide walks you through how to make contact, what documents you’ll need, what happens to the account and any Spaces, and when probate is required.
Quick reference:
- Phone: 020 7930 4450 (24/7)
- Email: help@starlingbank.com (mark it for the Bereavement Team)
- Probate required if: sole account balance exceeds £10,000
- Timeline: within 2 working days once all documents are received
Source: Starling Bank bereavement support, last verified March 2026.
How to notify Starling Bank of a death
Starling has no branches, so the process is handled by phone, email, or post. You do not need to be the next of kin to make the initial notification – anyone can contact them on behalf of the family.
Option 1: Phone (recommended) Call 020 7930 4450, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Starling’s Bereavement Team handles these calls. Calling is usually the fastest way to freeze the account and get clear guidance on next steps.
Option 2: Email Send an email to help@starlingbank.com, addressed to the Bereavement Team. This works well if you’re dealing with multiple organisations simultaneously, or if you prefer to communicate in writing. Include the deceased’s full name, date of birth, and date of death where possible.
Option 3: Post Write to: Bereavement Team, Starling Bank Limited, 5th Floor, London Fruit and Wool Exchange, 1 Duval Square, London E1 6PW. Postal contact is slower and best reserved for sending certified document copies rather than as a first point of contact.
Option 4: Via Settld Starling has partnered with Settld, a free online service that lets you notify multiple banks and institutions in one go. If you’re dealing with accounts at several organisations, Settld can save considerable time. You can initiate the Starling notification at settld.care/what-to-do-when-an-account-holder-dies/banking/starling-bank/.
| Contact method | Details |
|---|---|
| Phone | 020 7930 4450 (24/7) |
| help@starlingbank.com | |
| Post | Bereavement Team, 5th Floor, London Fruit and Wool Exchange, 1 Duval Square, London E1 6PW |
| Via Settld | settld.care |
Source: Starling Bank bereavement support, last verified March 2026.
Once Starling receives your notification, the account is frozen immediately. Direct debits and other outgoing payments stop at that point.
No branches – what that means in practice
With no in-person appointments available, everything is handled remotely. For most families this makes little practical difference – phone and email are straightforward. The one situation to be aware of is identity verification: if the deceased’s phone was their primary Starling login device and no one has access to it, mention this when you first contact the Bereavement Team. They can work around it.
Documents you’ll need
The documents required depend on the account balance. You do not need to have everything in place before making contact – notify Starling first, and they will tell you exactly what to submit.
Proof of death:
- A copy of the death certificate (Starling accepts a copy, not the original)
- Alternatively, a coroner’s certificate in the early stages before the death certificate is issued
Copy of the will (if one exists): Starling will ask for this to establish who has authority to deal with the estate.
Proof of your identity:
- A certified copy of your photocard driving licence or passport
- If you are an existing Starling customer yourself, certification is not required
Grant of probate or letters of administration: Required only if the account balance is more than £10,000. If the deceased left a valid will, you’ll need the grant of probate. If they died without a will (intestate), you’ll need letters of administration.
| Account balance | Documents required |
|---|---|
| £10,000 or under | Death certificate copy, copy of will (if any), your proof of identity |
| Over £10,000 | Death certificate copy, copy of will (if any), your proof of identity, grant of probate or letters of administration |
If you need multiple certified copies of the death certificate – which is likely if you’re notifying several organisations at once – order them from the register office when you register the death. They cost £11 each in England and Wales. See gov.uk/order-copy-birth-death-marriage-certificate.
Starling’s £10,000 probate threshold is notably lower than most high-street banks (typically £25,000–£50,000). Even a modest current account balance can tip above this level, so it’s worth checking the balance early. See the section on probate below for more on what this means in practice.
What happens to the account
Sole accounts
As soon as Starling is notified, they freeze the sole account. Outgoing payments – direct debits, standing orders, card transactions – stop immediately. This is intentional: it protects the estate from money draining away.
If any of those payments covered shared household expenses – utilities, insurance, council tax, subscriptions – you’ll need to arrange alternative payment methods. Contact those providers as soon as possible to avoid service interruptions. A list of which direct debits were active can be requested from Starling.
Any outstanding debt owed to Starling – an overdraft, for example – is recovered from the estate balance before the remaining funds are released to the estate.
Once Starling has received all necessary documentation, they will transfer the remaining balance to a nominated account within 2 working days.
Starling Spaces (savings)
Starling customers often hold money in Spaces – the bank’s built-in savings feature. Any funds held in Spaces form part of the same account and are included in the total balance that Starling will release. You do not need to take any separate action to close Spaces – they are handled as part of the overall account closure process.
Funeral cost payments
If you need to cover funeral costs, Starling can transfer money directly from the deceased’s account to the funeral director, without waiting for the full estate process to complete. To arrange this, you’ll need to provide:
- The funeral director’s invoice (final invoice only – estimates are not accepted)
- The death certificate (if not already submitted)
The amount transferred is capped at the account balance. This can ease significant financial pressure in the days immediately after a death. Mention it specifically when you first contact the Bereavement Team.
Joint accounts
Starling’s joint account process differs from most banks and from digital banks like Monzo. When a joint account holder dies, Starling closes the joint account rather than converting it to a sole account. This means the surviving account holder will need to open a new sole account with Starling (or another bank) to receive their share of the funds.
Steps for the surviving joint account holder:
- Notify Starling by phone (020 7930 4450) as soon as practicable
- Provide the death certificate
- Starling will close the joint account and work with you on releasing your portion of the funds
- If you do not already have a sole Starling account, consider whether to open one or transfer to another bank
Direct debits on joint accounts: Any direct debits set up on the joint account will be cancelled when the account is closed. Review what payments were running and arrange replacements – council tax, utilities, insurance – before the account closes.
Source: Starling Bank Account Schedule – Joint Current Account, last verified March 2026.
Probate and the £10,000 threshold
Probate is the legal process that grants an executor authority to manage and distribute an estate. Starling’s threshold for requiring probate is £10,000 – considerably lower than the £25,000–£50,000 thresholds used by most high-street and digital banks.
If the sole account balance is £10,000 or under, Starling can release funds without probate, once they have the death certificate, the will (if one exists), and your proof of identity.
If the sole account balance exceeds £10,000, you will need either:
- A grant of probate (if the deceased left a valid will and named an executor), or
- Letters of administration (if the deceased died without a will, or without naming a valid executor)
The low threshold catches some families by surprise – particularly if the deceased used Starling as a primary current account with a modest buffer. A balance of £15,000 or £20,000 would require probate from Starling even though the same amount at Barclays (£50,000 threshold), HSBC (£50,000), or Halifax (£50,000) would not. Other digital banks have higher thresholds: Monzo and Chase UK both sit at £25,000.
If you need to apply for probate, you can apply directly through the government service at gov.uk/applying-for-probate. For a straightforward estate, the process typically takes 4–16 weeks from application to grant – see our guide to how long probate takes for a full breakdown.
Joint account balances do not count towards the probate threshold – that applies only to sole accounts.
Scotland: The Scottish equivalent of probate is confirmation. The process is similar but administered through the sheriff court rather than the Probate Registry. Starling will accept Scottish confirmation in place of an English grant of probate.
How long does it take?
Once Starling has all the documents they need, the funds are transferred within 2 working days. Source: Starling Bank bereavement support, last verified March 2026.
In practice, the timeline depends heavily on how quickly paperwork can be gathered:
| Situation | Typical timeline |
|---|---|
| Balance under £10,000 – no probate needed | 2 working days once death certificate and ID received |
| Balance over £10,000 – probate required | 2 working days after grant of probate received; probate itself typically takes 4–16 weeks |
| Joint account closure | Depends on documentation – Starling will advise on contact |
| Funeral director payment | Can be arranged quickly once final invoice submitted |
The main delay in most cases is not Starling – it is waiting for the grant of probate if the balance exceeds £10,000. If you are managing multiple accounts at different institutions, it is worth notifying all of them early, even before probate, so the clock starts as soon as the grant arrives.
Things to watch out for
The £10,000 threshold is low. Most families are caught off-guard by this. A balance of £12,000 in a Starling current account will require full probate – the same amount at most high-street banks would not. Check the approximate balance as soon as you can, so you know whether to begin the probate process.
The joint account is closed, not converted. Unlike most banks, Starling closes the joint account when a holder dies rather than converting it to a sole account. This means the surviving holder will need a replacement account to receive their funds. If they don’t already have one, open a sole Starling account or arrange for funds to be transferred to an existing account at another bank.
Direct debits stop immediately. When the account is frozen, all outgoing payments are cancelled. This can disrupt household bills that were paid from the account. Make a list of direct debits before or immediately after notification so nothing essential is missed – insurance, utilities, council tax, subscriptions.
No branches means no in-person verification. If someone wants to bring documents in person, that is not possible with Starling. All documentation is submitted remotely. If the deceased’s phone or login details are unavailable (which affects the app’s two-factor authentication), tell the Bereavement Team from the outset – they can handle it without access to the app.
Settld can save time. If you are dealing with multiple banks, insurers, and utility companies at once, Starling’s partnership with Settld means you can notify them as part of a single multi-organisation notification. This is genuinely useful if the deceased held accounts across several institutions.
Funeral payment requests are time-sensitive. Starling can pay a funeral director directly before the estate is formally settled, but only against a final invoice. If you are in early discussions with a funeral director and only have an estimate, hold off requesting the payment until the final bill is confirmed.
Summary
To notify Starling Bank after a bereavement, call 020 7930 4450 (24/7) or email help@starlingbank.com marked for the Bereavement Team. The account is frozen immediately on notification. Starling’s probate threshold is £10,000 – lower than most banks – so check the balance early. Once all documents are in, funds are released within 2 working days.
Key contacts:
- Phone: 020 7930 4450 (24/7)
- Email: help@starlingbank.com (Bereavement Team)
- Post: Bereavement Team, Starling Bank Limited, 5th Floor, London Fruit and Wool Exchange, 1 Duval Square, London E1 6PW
- Via Settld: settld.care
What to have ready:
- Copy of the death certificate
- Copy of the will (if one exists)
- Your proof of identity (driving licence or passport)
- Grant of probate or letters of administration (only if balance exceeds £10,000)
For a broader overview of what happens to bank accounts when someone dies – including the difference between sole and joint accounts and how the notification process works across multiple banks – see what happens to bank accounts when someone dies.