Worked at Heritable Bank in the UK? Your pension probably still exists. The name on your payslip may not.

If you worked for Heritable Bank in the UK, this page is for you. The name goes back to 1887, it has carried five names, and in October 2008 a Treasury Order moved its deposit liabilities, in force minutes after it was made.

What happened

Companies House lists the name Heritable and General Trust Limited for the company from 6 January 1887 to 2 November 1987 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). Companies House lists the name The Heritable & General Investment Bank Limited for the company from 2 November 1987 to 13 December 1989 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). Companies House lists the name The Heritable and General Investment Bank Limited for the company from 13 December 1989 to 6 April 2001 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). Companies House lists the name Heritable Bank Limited for the company from 6 April 2001 to 28 July 2008 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). The Treasury's Order on Heritable Bank was made on 7 October 2008 and came into force at 9.30 a.m. that day (Source: The Heritable Bank plc Transfer of Certain Rights and Liabilities Order 2008, legislation.gov.uk, read 3 November 2026). By the Order the liabilities of Heritable Bank plc to depositors in respect of relevant deposit accounts were transferred to Deposits Management (Heritable) Limited (Source: The Heritable Bank plc Transfer of Certain Rights and Liabilities Order 2008, legislation.gov.uk, read 3 November 2026). The Order describes Deposits Management (Heritable) Limited as a company wholly owned by the Treasury (Source: The Heritable Bank plc Transfer of Certain Rights and Liabilities Order 2008, legislation.gov.uk, read 3 November 2026). The Order's explanatory memorandum says it also makes provision that applies if Heritable is placed into administration after the transfer (Source: Explanatory memorandum to the Heritable Bank plc Transfer of Certain Rights and Liabilities Order 2008, legislation.gov.uk, read 3 November 2026). Companies House records Heritable Bank public limited company as dissolved on 26 January 2021 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026).

Why the trail is hard

The Order moves deposit liabilities. It says nothing that we have read about staff or pension arrangements, so this page says nothing about them. The company changed its name more than once, so a record from your years can sit under a name you never saw on a payslip. We have not read who owned Heritable Bank before October 2008, so the page names no owner.

Which era were you in?

The employer's name and owner changed over the years, so the first question is which one you worked for. This holds for the dates in the left column.

Which pension arrangement applied to you depends on the company that employed you in those years and on your own terms. This page does not name a scheme or say who holds one today. A name that is right for the bank today may not have been right for your years, so we do not guess. Your report names it.

Not sure which row fits? Start the free check and tell us when you worked at Heritable Bank.

Do I have a pension from my Heritable Bank years?

It depends first on when you left. The law set a minimum, and a scheme could always be more generous than the law.

If you left after 6 April 1988 with 2 years or more of service, you very likely have a preserved pension, if you were in the scheme.

Sources: the age 26 and 5 year rule, Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16, paragraph 6(1), read 20 October 2026, in force from 6 April 1975 (Social Security Act 1973 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1973, read 20 October 2026). The age condition ended on 1 January 1986 (Social Security Act 1985, section 1, read 20 October 2026, and Social Security Act 1985 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1985, read 20 October 2026). Five years became two with effect from 6 April 1988 (Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16 as amended, note on the Social Security Act 1986, section 10, read 20 October 2026). Two years today, and 30 days for money purchase service that began on or after 1 October 2015 (Pension Schemes Act 1993, section 71, read 20 October 2026).

The free official route comes first

The UK government's free Pension Tracing Service gives you contact details for a workplace pension scheme from the name of an employer. It has a limit, in its own words: "This service will not tell you whether you have a pension, or what its value is." (Source: GOV.UK, Find pension contact details, read 20 October 2026.)

With an old City bank, the name is the hard part. The name on your payslip is rarely the name on the record today, and a search for the wrong name finds the wrong scheme or nothing you recognise.

Former colleagues

We have not yet checked for alumni groups or reunions for Heritable Bank, so we list none. If you know of one, the notice board below is coming for exactly this.

Frequently asked questions

I worked for Heritable Bank in its earlier years. Is this my page? Yes. The company's earlier names are in the table above, and the one on your payslip may be any of them. Tell us the name and your years when you order.

Did the Order affect my pension? We have not read a source that says it did. The Order concerns deposit accounts. Your report follows the records that apply to your years.

Was Heritable Bank part of a larger group? We have not read a source that says who owned it, so we do not say. See our Singer & Friedlander page for the other bank whose deposits a Treasury Order moved in October 2008.

Do you contact the pension scheme for me? No. We identify who holds the pension and give you what to send. You contact them yourself, and the pension stays yours throughout.

Is the government tracing service not enough? It is the right first step, and it costs nothing. It gives a contact for a scheme name you already have. It will not tell you whether you have a pension, and with Heritable Bank the name you remember is not the name on the record today.

What if you find nothing? We say so in the report. The refund promise sits next to the order button above.

More of the City's vanished banks: Singer & Friedlander, Northern Rock, Bradford & Bingley, and the A to Z of old names.