Estate planning as a Kroger account holder

Kroger runs a grocery loyalty program built around the Kroger Plus / Shopper's Card (or Alternate ID). A single loyalty account holds several estate-relevant items: a Fuel Points balance, redeemed with the Shopper's Card or Alt ID at Kroger Fuel Centers and partner fuel stations; digital coupons loaded to the Card; any Cash Back Offer rewards balance; and a paid Boost membership. The Cash Back balance is the only one of these that carries money: a Distribution Request redeems it to the Shopper's Card, up to $99.99 a day, or to PayPal once the balance reaches $20. None of the loyalty assets transfer to an outside person. Kroger does offer household Shopper's Card account linking, which lets members who reside at the same address combine their coupons, Fuel Points and rewards; a member asks for the link by calling Kroger Customer Service. That is the practical way the savings continue to benefit a surviving household member.

When a Kroger account holder dies, their points are forfeited. The program's terms state that points do not constitute property of the account holder and cannot be transferred upon death, by operation of law, or through estate planning documents.

Members can share points through Kroger's family or pooling feature. Kroger offers household Shopper's Card account linking. Its Digital Account FAQ states: "We offer household Shopper's Card account linking. This will allow you to combine your coupons, Fuel Points and rewards with others that reside in your household. Shoppers must share the same address and purchase items for that household. Please call us at 800-576-4377 (1-800-576-4377) to have your accounts linked." The link is requested by the member on that line rather than applied automatically, the published condition is a shared address, and the poolable set is coupons, Fuel Points and rewards. It does NOT extend to the Cash Back Offer rewards balance: the Cash Back Offer Rewards Program Terms provide that the balance "cannot be combined with Cash Back Rewards of any other member or participant in the Program." To unlink, Kroger directs members to call the same number: "If someone in your household is moving to a different address, please call us at 800-576-4377 (1-800-576-4377) to have the account disconnected." This is pooling among same-address household members, not a transfer of the account or the balance to an outside person.

What happens at death

Kroger's loyalty assets are forfeited at death by default. Kroger publishes no deceased-account, bereavement, or estate-claim workflow for the loyalty program, and no beneficiary designation. The Cash Back Offer Rewards Program Terms state that Cash Back Rewards balances "have no cash, monetary or other value prior to being accumulated and redeemed pursuant to a valid Distribution Request," that "Cash Back Rewards balances are not your property, and you have no property rights or other legal interest in the Cash Back Rewards," that all Cash Back Rewards "remain the sole property of Kroger until distributed," and that the balance "is not transferable, cannot be brokered, bartered, or sold, and cannot be divided as part of a settlement, legal proceeding or death, and cannot be combined with Cash Back Rewards of any other member or participant in the Program." The same terms provide that if a member cancels the account without first making a Distribution Request, any Cash Back Rewards balance in the account may, subject to applicable laws, expire upon that cancellation, and that expired Cash Back Rewards are no longer redeemable. Kroger also describes Cash Back as a pilot that may be terminated at any time, in which case the available cash balance is transferred to the Shopper's Card. Fuel Points are redeemed with the Shopper's Card or Alt ID at Kroger Fuel Centers and partner fuel stations and expire on the schedule set by the Fuel Points Program terms, so a balance can lapse on its own whether or not anyone reports the death. One point cuts the other way and is worth knowing: deleting the deceased member's DIGITAL account does not erase the loyalty assets. Kroger's Digital Account FAQ states that the Kroger Plus Card, Fuel Points, purchase history, digital coupons already added, digital coupon credits, reward points, Community Rewards, store credit and Boost membership benefits all remain on the account and can be accessed and updated by calling Customer Service or visiting the in-store Customer Service desk. The one continuity path Kroger operates is household Shopper's Card account linking: members who reside at the same address and purchase items for that household can combine their coupons, Fuel Points and rewards, and a member asks for the link by calling 1-800-576-4377. That is household sharing among same-address members, not an estate transfer, Kroger decides whether to make the link, and it does not extend to the Cash Back balance, which the terms say cannot be combined with another member's.