Notify Banks and Financial Institutions

What you'll need

• Death certificate (certified copies — bring several)
• Letters testamentary or letters of administration from the probate court (if applicable)
• Account numbers and institution names
• Your own government-issued ID

Steps

1. Make a list of all financial institutions where the deceased held accounts — checking, savings, CDs, safe deposit boxes, loans, and credit cards.
2. Contact each institution to notify them of the death. Most will require you to visit a branch in person with a certified death certificate.
3. Ask about the account ownership structure for each account — joint accounts with right of survivorship transfer automatically, sole accounts require probate or a beneficiary designation to transfer.
4. Ask about any payable-on-death (POD) or transfer-on-death (TOD) designations — these transfer outside of probate directly to the named beneficiary.
5. For accounts that require probate, the bank will typically freeze the account until you provide letters testamentary from the court.
6. Ask about any outstanding loans, mortgages, or credit card balances — these become claims against the estate.
7. Close accounts that are solely in the deceased's name once the estate has been settled and funds distributed.