Tens of thousands of teenagers have failed to claim hundreds of millions of pounds put away for them. They are now owed a share of a massive £394m cash pot waiting to be claimed.
According to a government spending watchdog, 145,000 young people have failed to claim the money which was invested for them in child trust funds (CTFs). The National Audit Office (NAO) has now raised concerns the accounts are at risk of becoming forgotten or lost track of by those holding them.
A CTF is a long-term tax-free savings account for children born between September 1 2002 and January 2 2011, which they can access when they turn 18. It is estimated that more than one-quarter of CTFs remain untouched for a year or more after their owners reach that age.
