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Home >> Special Situations >> Deceased Individuals
Dealing with Accounts of the Deceased
My mother-in-law just died. She and my father-in-law had a joint account. How does he go about changing it into his own name? My mother-in-law also had an account of her own. How does my father-in-law have this account put into his name or close it?
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 For the joint account, he can provide the bank with a certified copy of his wife's certificate of death. The bank will keep a copy and return the certified record. He'll also need to provide a current ID, even if the bank staff know him, they'll need the information for the bank's records, and his Social Security number, if it's not already on file. The bank representative should go over the account with him to determine if there are any standing monthly transactions: insurance premiums, annuity payments, etc., that need to be canceled. The bank may ask that a new account be opened and that the balance be transferred, although many banks do not make that a requirement when a joint owner has died.
As for the individual account, he can ask the bank representative if there is a small-balance payout provision for accounts of deceased bank customers. In some states, such payouts can be made to a spouse or other next of kin, provided the account balance doesn't exceed an amount specified in the law. In other states, the account would have to be taken over by the legal representative of her estate, regardless of the balance. The bank is the best source for more information on that question.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 1/28/10
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