The Next of kins of some deceased Nigerians have lamented the tedious process of accessing the funds in the bank accounts of their late relatives.

Some of them in Abuja on Monday called for a reduction in the timeline for obtaining some documents for the release of the funds.

Emenike Eke, a civil servant, said the timeline for obtaining the ‘Letter of Administration’ from the court to take to the deceased bank to commence the process took two to three months.

Mr Eke said the timeline and the processes were discouraging and frustrating, recalling that the court had issued him a letter mandating the bank to disclose the account balance of his loved one, which they did.

”The bank then requested a letter of administration from the next of kin of the deceased bank customer, which is normally issued by the probate section of the Federal High Court.

”I proceeded to the court again, and they requested the death certificate from the hospital where the deceased passed away and the said letter, which took some months.

”When the letter was finally released after three months, I took it to the bank, and they said their legal department would process the fund and forward it to the probate department of the court,” he said.

Mr Eke said he applied for the release of the balance of the fund in the deceased relative’s account after the funds were eventually forwarded to the probate department of the High Court by the bank. He added that the money was released to him.

Janet Besidon, a spouse of another deceased bank customer, said the process of accessing the late husband’s outstanding account balance was stressful as she was not his next of kin.

Ms Besidon said the late husband used the daughter, who had travelled abroad, as his NOK. She called for a reduction in the process as it could weary family members who would still be in mourning mood.

”It took a lot of time and protocols before the fund was accessed, and I became exhausted,” he said.

Emmanuel Yohanna, a relative of a deceased bank customer, appealed to spouses to grant each other access to their accounts to avoid stress in the event of death or other unforeseen circumstances.

However, Andy Kolapo, another relative of a deceased bank customer, said the process was just the usual documentation done everywhere.

“You have to do the normal documentation, just like when a civil servant is retiring from service,” said Mr Kolapo.

A bank official who pleaded anonymity said the process was entirely the responsibility of the probate court.

The official said the documentation was not tedious as it involved money and would not be released to anyone without proper documentation and enquiries.

”The thing is not stressful because this is a money matter, and you cannot just release it because the person said he or she is the NOK.

”There has to be proper documentation and processes so that another person will not come tomorrow and claim to be the NOK of a deceased customer that has been paid,” the official said.

Another banker who preferred anonymity said the processes were just normal documentation that needed to be done before a deceased customer’s fund was released.

(NAN)