THE family of a Clydebank man have urged a local bank to make a charity donation in compensation for legal fees they had to pay to close their late father’s bank account.

Patrick Hynes died in May 2020 at the age of 91, having lived in the town for most of his life.

He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, from asbestos in his lung, and was eventually cared for at St Margaret of Scotland Hospice in his final months.

When his family went to close their father’s account at the Clydebank Municipal Bank, it had more than £5,000 – and the bank said that according to its terms and conditions, a “certification of confirmation” would be required through the courts to release the money.

But Mr Hynes’ family said they have not seen any proof of this in their father’s paperwork – and said the bank later changed the lower limit to £10,000.

They now want to see the bank make a donation to charity as a gesture of goodwill for the legal fees of £1,000 they had to pay to ensure the account was closed.

But bosses at the bank – one of only two municipal banks left in Scotland – said they were following the policies set up to safeguard the funds of account holders.

Son Noel Hynes told the Post: “The family did not want any personal money from this situation but any amount offered would have been given to St Margaret’s Hospice, where my father spent his last few months and where his care and support were excellent.

“We had to pay nearly £1,000 to close my father’s account due to the limit set by the bank, though no problems existed with any other bank or financial places we dealt with.

“At the time of my father’s last days and months, our main concern was spending as much time as we could with him, latterly at the hospice.

“Our last concern was dealing with banks and money.”

He continued: “Our family was fortunate that we had enough funds to pay for my father’s funeral. If we had been dependent on the Municipal Bank, these funds would not have been released.

“We are still very angry at the decision of the bank.

“If they had even made an offer to give a donation to St Margaret’s Hospice, we may have considered this.

“My father was a customer for more than 30 years with this bank. Until his health declined and he was unable to do so, he would personally visit the bank at least once a month.

“He was so appreciative of the people who worked with the bank for the courtesy he was shown over the years.

The only thing the family are looking for is compensation for the distress this matter has caused and to that end a donation equivalent of the £1,000 the family had to pay to close my father’s estate.”

Mr Hynes said the family had got two cheques from their father’s account while he was alive but in the hospice in 2020.

They said they would have moved more to charity then, or emptied the account at that stage, but that their focus was on spending time with their dad.

And in any event, they pointed out, the bank was closed to the public at the time because of Covid restrictions.

Much of Mr Hynes’ remaining estate will go to the hospice and the Clydebank Asbestos Group.

A spokeswoman for the bank, which celebrated its 100th birthday in June and has board members including Clydebank councillors, said they had a legal duty to safeguard funds held in accounts.

She told the Post: “We understand this is a difficult time and are sorry to hear the family are unhappy with the policies and process in place at the Municipal Bank.

“While we sympathise, all financial institutions are legally required to implement appropriate policies to safeguard account holders’ funds.

“In common with many other banks, a Certificate of Confirmation is sometimes required for the release of funds.”