How Do I Designate Beneficiaries for Bank Accounts?
Whether you have standard checking and savings accounts, brokerage accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, or all of the above, you may have made great efforts toward contributing to them throughout your adult life. But allocating and saving funds in these accounts may be pointless if you never get around to cashing it in or, worse, if you do not have anyone to pass it down to upon your untimely death. This is all to say that you should make beneficiary designations for these accounts. So please read on to discover how to designate beneficiaries for your bank accounts and how one of the seasoned Butler County estate planning & probate attorneys at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC can advise you through the whole process.
How do I designate beneficiaries for my bank accounts?
Before you dive right in, you should sit down and take inventory of all your bank accounts eligible for beneficiary designations. Then, you should reflect deeply on the best individuals to inherit these funds down the line. Once you have a clear idea of how to move forward, you may reach out to the financial institution(s) where your account(s) is held.
While different institutions may follow different protocols, the common theme is that they will ask you to fill out a beneficiary designation form. This form may ask you standard questions regarding your desired beneficiary, such as their full legal name, date of birth, Social Security Number, mailing address, contact information, and more.
Lastly, once you fill out and submit this form, you should soon follow up with the institution. This is to ensure that the form has been properly processed and approved. Of note, you may reach out to the institution regarding corrective measures should you ever change your mind about this decision in the future.
Do I still need a will if I have bank account beneficiaries?
One of the most ideal benefits of adding beneficiaries to your bank accounts is that these assets may now sidestep the extensive and demanding probate process. However, this does not necessarily mean you can avoid the Pennsylvania probate court altogether and forgo establishing a Last Will and Testament.
Rather, this legal document is necessary for you to instruct on distributions for assets that are not covered by official beneficiary designations, such as real estate property and personal items, among other things. The last thing you may want is for your family members to conflict and initiate litigated proceedings over these unprotected assets.
What’s more, your will may serve as a backup should something go awry with your bank account beneficiaries. For example, your primary beneficiary may sadly predecease you or is otherwise unwilling or unable to inherit these funds. In this case, you may use your will to direct alternative beneficiaries or otherwise alternative plans for these unclaimed funds.
Before entering these proceedings, you should have already hired one of the competent Butler County estate planning & probate attorneys to represent you. So, if you have not done so already, please contact Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC today.
