Who gets the member rights on a joint building society account?

If you hold a joint savings account or mortgage with a building society, you might assume you both have the same say in how the society is run. In most cases you do not. The standard rule across the sector is that only the first named holder on a joint account gets the full set of member rights, including the right to vote at the annual general meeting. The second and later named holders are usually members too, but with fewer rights, mainly the right to receive information¹.

Nationwide puts it plainly: both holders of a joint current account become members, but only the first named account holder has the right to vote on Nationwide matters³. Coventry Building Society says the same: if you have a joint account, only the first named account holder can vote⁴. Market Harborough Building Society's savings terms confirm that only the first named saver is entitled to membership rights, including the right to receive notices of, and to attend and vote at, meetings of the society⁵.

This matters because building societies are mutual organisations. When you open a savings account or take out a mortgage, you become a member, not just a customer⁶. That membership gives you a say in how the organisation is run, including decisions about charity partnerships and how the society is managed⁷. But on a joint account, that say is concentrated in one name.

What member rights on a building society account cover

Building societies are mutuals, which means most customers who have a savings account or mortgage are members and have certain rights that come with being a member². You become a member when you open a savings account or take out a mortgage with a building society⁶. Holders of share accounts are members of the society and bound by its rules⁵.

As a member, you have rights to receive information and to voice your opinions on the way your building society is run¹. Those information rights include a copy of the society's rules and memorandum on request, a copy of the annual summary financial statement, a copy of the detailed annual report and accounts, and notice of the AGM². Shareholders can vote in elections for the board of directors, attend annual general and other meetings and, providing the correct procedures are followed, propose motions or stand for election themselves⁷.

Building societies operate on the principle of one member, one vote². That means your vote counts the same whether you have £100 or £100,000 in your account. If you are both a saver and a borrower with a society, you will still normally have just one vote, except when asked to vote on a conversion or merger, when two separate votes are given².

The AGM must be held within four months of the end of the society's financial year². The majority of societies have a financial year ending in December, and usually hold their AGMs in the following April².

Where the second and later joint holders stand

The Building Societies Association explains that where there are joint holders of a share account, only the first named account holder is entitled to all of the members' rights. The second or subsequent named holders are entitled to fewer rights, mainly regarding obtaining information².

That does not mean the second named holder is not a member. Nationwide confirms that both holders of a joint account become members, but only the first named holder has the right to vote³. Yorkshire Building Society states that joint account holders are all members but only the first named person is eligible to vote at the annual general meeting⁸.

Some societies take a different approach. Suffolk Building Society says that if there are multiple account holders, the society will transfer voting rights to the account holder who has been a member with them for the longest period⁹. Monmouthshire Building Society states that where an account is held jointly, voting rights are normally exercised by the first named account holder¹⁰.

There is also a category of restricted member. Saving members with less than £100 in their account, borrowing members with a mortgage of less than £100, and members under the age of 18 have restricted rights, allowing them only to receive information on request. They cannot vote, nominate directors or speak at AGMs².

Does the order of names on a joint account matter?

For day to day banking, the order of names usually makes no difference. Most joint accounts are set up as either-to-sign, where each account holder can give payment and withdrawal instructions independently¹¹. Each account holder can withdraw money without asking the other person¹².

The order of names also does not affect how payments are matched. Handelsbanken says that for joint accounts, you only need to provide the name of one of the account holders, and the order of names does not affect the matching response¹³. Leek Building Society says the same: you only need to provide one of the names registered to the account, and name order does not affect the matching response¹⁴.

But for member rights, the order is everything. The first named holder is the one whose membership carries the voting rights in most societies³. The order is set when the account is opened and appears on your statements and account paperwork.

There is one area where the order of names can matter for payments: some societies ask for the full name of both account holders as they appear on the account when setting up certain payment arrangements¹⁵. Teachers Building Society takes the opposite approach, saying that if the account is in joint names, the name of only one of the account holders should be used¹⁶.

Changing who is named first on a joint account

If you want to change which holder is named first, you will need to contact your society directly. There is no general rule on how societies handle this, so the process will depend on your society's own terms and conditions.

What is clear is that the order of names is not something you can change yourself through online banking. It is a formal change to the account record. Family Building Society notes that for joint accounts, each account holder will need to register separately if they would like online access¹⁷. That is about access, not about changing the order of names.

If you want your own member rights, one option is to open a separate sole account in your own name. Many societies allow this. Yorkshire Building Society says many of its savings accounts can be opened as joint accounts¹⁸, which implies sole accounts are also available. But some accounts cannot be held jointly at all. Bath Building Society's One Year Fixed Rate ISA can only be opened by one person and cannot be a joint account¹⁹. Its Instant ISA has the same restriction: only one account holder, no joint accounts, and only one Instant ISA per person with Bath Building Society²⁰.

Member rights on a joint account compared with a sole account

On a sole account, you are the first named and only holder. You get the full set of member rights: the right to vote, to receive information, to attend meetings and to stand for election⁷. On a joint account, only the first named holder gets those rights².

The practical difference is stark. If you hold a joint account and you are not the first named holder, you cannot vote at the AGM, you cannot nominate directors, and you cannot speak at AGMs². You may still receive information about the society, but you do not have a say in how it is run.

There is one exception worth knowing about. Holders of Permanent Interest Bearing Shares (PIBS) are members of the issuing building society and are entitled to voting rights²². PIBS are a type of investment, not a savings account, so this is unlikely to affect most joint account holders.

For tax purposes, interest earned in a joint account is usually split equally between each person, with tax only due if a share is above the annual allowance²³. If you have a joint account, you only enter your share, usually 50%, of the interest received on form P53Z²⁴.

Would a joint holder share in a windfall if a building society converted or merged?

This is one of the most common questions about building society membership, and the answer depends on the type of account and the society's rules.

Market Harborough Building Society states that holders of deposit accounts are not members of the society and have no entitlement to attend or vote at meetings, or receive windfall benefits⁵. For share accounts, the position can be different. The society's savings terms say that where the transfer to a successor is publicly announced within five years of the day on which you become a holder of an account, windfall benefits may be assigned to charity²⁵.

The legislation on building society bonuses excludes any bonus, distribution of funds or the conferring of rights in relation to shares in connection with an amalgamation, transfer of engagements or transfer of business of a building society²⁶. That means the statutory framework sets limits on what counts as a windfall in those circumstances.

If a society converts or merges, the terms set out who qualifies. The first named holder is normally the one whose membership counts. The Building Societies Association's guidance on member rights is a starting point for understanding what applies in your case¹.

Where to check your society's rules and get help

The rules on joint account member rights are set out in each society's terms and conditions. These are the documents you received when you opened the account, and they are also available on the society's website.

For a general explanation of what member rights are and how they work, the Building Societies Association publishes a consumer factsheet on your rights as a building society member¹ and a leaflet on the same subject². These are independent guidance, not the rules of any one society.

If you are unsure which holder is named first on your account, contact your society directly. The order of names appears on your statements and account paperwork. If you need to change it, your society will explain the process.

For free, impartial help with money questions, MoneyHelper is the government-backed service²³. If you are struggling with debt, StepChange offers free advice²¹. If you have a complaint about your society that you cannot resolve, the Financial Ombudsman Service can look at it.