How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Bar Harbor Bank
Covers 8 deposit, 3 retirement, 3 lending, and 1 investment accounts — beneficiaries must be updated in-branch
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, PO Box 1089, Ellsworth, ME 04605-9963
Bar Harbor Wealth Management (trust services, estate planning, and estate settlement)
Bar Harbor Wealth Management, 90 North Main Street, Concord, NH 03301
Customer Service Center (estate settlement is handled through the branches; Bar Harbor publishes no separate claims department, claims fax, or claims portal)
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, PO Box 1089, Ellsworth, ME 04605-9963
Estate planning for your Bar Harbor Bank accounts starts with understanding how each one transfers at death. Beneficiary designations and trust retitling both bypass probate, but the right approach depends on the account type, your tax situation, and how much control you want over distributions.
Across 15 product types, Bar Harbor Bank accounts vary in how they transfer at death. The sections below walk through Payable on Death (POD) designations, trust funding options, and which products support each method.
- For deposit accounts: request POD (Payable on Death) designation with beneficiary full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship
- For IRA accounts: complete the IRA Beneficiary Designation form with primary and contingent beneficiary sections
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- Bar Harbor Bank & Trust publishes no downloadable beneficiary designation form. The POD designation is made on the bank's account records at a branch; IRA beneficiary forms are issued by the branch or by the Customer Service Center at 888-853-7100.
- Deposit-account beneficiaries share EQUALLY. The Account Agreement (Effective 2.2.26) provides for Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire alike that if two or more beneficiaries are named and survive the death of all persons creating the account, "such beneficiaries will own this account in equal shares, without right of survivorship." Percentage allocations are not available on a deposit POD designation; an unequal split requires separate accounts or a trust.
- In Maine the account form is called a "Revocable Trust or Pay-On-Death Account"; in Vermont it is a "Revocable Trust or Pay-On-Death Account"; in New Hampshire it is a "Pay-on-Death Account." The person who creates the account may change beneficiaries, change account types, and withdraw all or part of the funds at any time.
- On a joint POD account, beneficiaries cannot withdraw until ALL persons who created the account have died and the beneficiary is then living.
- New Hampshire and Vermont accounts carry a 90-day beneficiary hold: a POD beneficiary cannot withdraw until 90 days have passed since the last surviving account holder died, and only if within that 90-day period the bank was not served with process by the account holder's personal representative or with a probate court order prohibiting payment. Maine POD accounts have no such waiting period.
- Any pledge of the account (a loan pledge the bank has consented to) must be satisfied before the rights of any surviving owner or account beneficiary become effective.
- Trust beneficiary designations may require a copy of the Certification of Trust
- IRA beneficiary changes for married account holders may require spousal consent depending on state law
Sources
Data sourced from Bar Harbor Bank primary sources (22 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Bar Harbor Bank instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Bar Harbor Bank primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, PO Box 1089, Ellsworth, ME 04605-9963
Bar Harbor Wealth Management (trust services, estate planning, and estate settlement)
Bar Harbor Wealth Management, 90 North Main Street, Concord, NH 03301
Customer Service Center (estate settlement is handled through the branches; Bar Harbor publishes no separate claims department, claims fax, or claims portal)
Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, PO Box 1089, Ellsworth, ME 04605-9963
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