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Home >> Special Situations >> Deceased Individuals
Sibling "Becomes" Authorized User: How?
My siblings and I were named in 2001 as POD beneficiaries on my mother's two accounts. In 2004, Mom made me a joint owner on the accounts. After she died in 2005, I paid all of the expenses from the accounts, and left my siblings on the accounts as POD beneficiaries.
I recently found out that one of my brothers somehow discovered that he was listed as an authorized user on one of the accounts, and nearly cleaned it out. The bank cannot explain when or how my brother's name was changed from beneficiary to authorized user. They have put the money back in my account, but I still want to find out how he could have become an authorized user if the bank has no documentation. Can you shed any light on this problem?
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 Based on personal experience in banking, we have to take the bank's side on your question, without making excuses. Sometimes the only explanation is that "Stuff happens." It's possible, for example, that a computer system upgrade or a conversion introduced bad information into the system. It's also possible that someone at the bank made a mistake that wasn't detected.
The important thing is that the bank returned the funds that your brother took to your account. That suggests that the bank accepted responsibility for what happened, even if it could not explain how it happened.
Check your bank statements promptly and regularly when they are made available to you, and contact the bank immediately if you see any transaction that you didn't authorize. That's good advice whether or not you've had problems in the past.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 5/18/09
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