Estate planning at Carter Bank
How to protect 12 Carter Bank accounts — manage beneficiaries in-branch, fund a trust in-branch, and file death claims
Customer Contact Center
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Debit card questions (24/7)
Debit card activation and PIN (24/7)
Lost or stolen debit card (24/7)
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Contact Center
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Debit card questions (24/7)
Debit card activation and PIN (24/7)
Lost or stolen debit card (24/7)
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Contact Center / branch network (no separate estate department)
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Close a deceased customer's debit card (24/7)
WebsiteNotify online→
Verified Jul 2026
Carter Bank has 12 accounts, each with different rules for what happens when the account holder dies. Of those, 10 can name a trust as beneficiary or be retitled into a trust. The right combination of beneficiary designations and trust ownership can keep the entire portfolio out of probate.
Carter Bank handles beneficiary designations in branch, by mail, and by phone. Accounts can also be retitled into a trust to keep them out of probate entirely.
Carter Bank provides specific procedures for both proactive estate planning and filing claims after a death.
Preparing your estate
Beneficiaries and trust funding
How to update beneficiaries in-branch, fund a trust in-branch, and review 12 account types at Carter Bank.
View details →When someone dies
Death claim process
7-step process, 9 required documents, and contact information for survivors.
View details →Carter Bank operates in select states, so estate planning procedures may vary by location. Confirm availability in your state before initiating trust funding or account changes.
Frequently asked questions
It can hold the account, but it will not serve as your trustee. Despite the "& Trust" in the chartered name, Carter Bank does not run a trust department or wealth management division. Section 28 (Fiduciary Accounts) of the deposit agreement says an account may be opened and maintained by a trustee under a written trust agreement, or by an executor, administrator, or conservator under court orders, and that by opening the account the bank is not acting as trustee and takes on no obligation to monitor or enforce the terms of the trust or the letters. So the trustee named in your instrument opens the checking, savings, money market, or CD account in the trust's name at a branch, using a Certification of Trust and photo ID.
Sources
Data sourced from Carter Bank primary sources (19 pages reviewed). How we research.
Customer Contact Center
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Debit card questions (24/7)
Debit card activation and PIN (24/7)
Lost or stolen debit card (24/7)
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Contact Center
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Debit card questions (24/7)
Debit card activation and PIN (24/7)
Lost or stolen debit card (24/7)
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Contact Center / branch network (no separate estate department)
Phone833-275-2228
Mailing Address
Carter Bank & Trust, 320 College Drive, Martinsville, VA 24112
Close a deceased customer's debit card (24/7)
WebsiteNotify online→
Verified Jul 2026
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your Carter Bank accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
