How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at CommunityAmerica

POD designations are available on checking, savings, money market and share certificate accounts.¹

Each share certificate takes its own beneficiary designation, made separately from the designations on other accounts. A certificate with no joint owner and no beneficiary becomes an asset of the estate even if other accounts have POD beneficiaries.¹

A POD designation does not apply to IRAs or other accounts governed by a separate account agreement and beneficiary designation. A Traditional IRA, Roth IRA or Certificate IRA takes the separate IRA beneficiary form.¹

A Coverdell ESA takes the separate IRA beneficiary form; a POD designation on deposit accounts does not reach it.²

A trust may be named as the POD beneficiary.¹

A beneficiary change must be made by written notice on a form approved by the credit union. On a joint or multiple party account, the written notice must come from all owners.¹

For payable-on-death accounts. Completed by every living owner of the account. Sent by the institution on request.¹

For IRAs. Sent by the institution on request.²

If a named POD beneficiary dies before the last account owner, that beneficiary's share lapses and is divided equally among the surviving named beneficiaries rather than passing to the deceased beneficiary's own heirs.¹

If no named POD beneficiary survives the last account owner, the funds belong to that owner's estate and can be claimed by the legal representative or by a creditor.¹

Divorce does not automatically remove a former spouse. The credit union is not responsible for updating designations after a marriage is dissolved or annulled, and is not liable for payments to a former spouse until it is told, by court order or operation of law, to remove them.¹

It is the member's responsibility, not the credit union's, to tell a person or organization that they have been named a POD beneficiary.¹

The credit union may open accounts under a court order, trust agreement or similar authority for a trust, probate, custodial or other fiduciary purpose.¹

Provided at a branch.²

The credit union may follow the direction of any one trustee on a trust-owned account. If it believes an instruction might expose it to claims, it may refuse to follow the instruction, require indemnification or require a bond.¹

The person acting as trustee or other fiduciary must be designated as such on the Account Card.¹

Revocable trust and living trust accounts are within the shares subject to the credit union's consensual lien and right of set-off. Irrevocable trust and fiduciary accounts in which the member holds no vested ownership interest are carved out.¹

Beneficiary and TOD elections on Guided Investing and Wealth Management accounts, and trust-owned investment accounts³

Trust administration, as distinct from retitling a deposit account³