What to do when a Connex CU account holder dies
Report the death to Connex CU's Member Service Center at 1-800-278-6466
The Member Service Center at Connex CU coordinates account transitions after a member's death. How each account is handled depends on its setup: POD and trust accounts transfer automatically, while solely-owned accounts typically require court authorization through Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
Death claim process
Here is the step-by-step death claim process at Connex CU:
Filing a claim
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID, for each beneficiary or claimant
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, for an account in one name with no POD designation and no surviving joint ownerIssued by the Connecticut Probate Court for the district where the deceased member lived.
- Connecticut Probate Court Form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration, for a small Connecticut estate, in place of lettersWith PC-212A and PC-212CI as they apply.
- Complete trust agreement or Certificate of Trust, and the trustee's ID, for a trust-titled account or a trust named as beneficiary
- Written stop instruction, from a person claiming an interest in the accountEnds the ten days in which Connex may keep honoring payments the deceased member authorized.
Forms Connex CU issues1
- IRA beneficiary distribution election
Completed by the IRA beneficiary. Provided at a branch.1
What happens to each kind of account10
- Joint account with survivorship
Unless the Account Card says otherwise, a joint account includes rights of survivorship and all sums pass to the surviving owners. The survivor's interest stays subject to Connex's statutory lien for the deceased owner's obligations and to any pledge that owner granted, even if the survivor never consented.2
- Joint account without survivorship
On a joint account without rights of survivorship, the deceased owner's interest passes to that owner's estate.2
- Payable-on-death account
When the last owner dies, the account is paid to all surviving POD or trust beneficiaries. They own the funds jointly in equal shares without rights of survivorship, unless state law provides otherwise or Connex permitted and documented a different split.2
- Account in one name
An account in one name with no POD designation and no surviving joint owner passes to the owner's estate.2
- Trust account
The POD and trust designation rules do not apply to an account held on behalf of or in the name of a trust. The successor trustee takes over under the trust, and Connex looks to the trust instrument rather than a beneficiary list.2
- IRA
An IRA cannot carry a POD or trust designation. It passes on its own beneficiary form and is claimed through the retirement path, not the deposit path.2
- Health savings account
A health savings account passes on its own beneficiary form and is claimed with that account's own beneficiary claim paperwork.2
- Coverdell education savings account
A Coverdell education savings account passes on its own beneficiary form and is claimed with that account's own beneficiary claim paperwork.2
- Certificate of deposit
Connex may, at its option, pay a certificate before maturity without an early withdrawal penalty if an account owner dies. Without a request for the waiver, the standard penalty applies.3
The standard penalty is 1% of the amount withdrawn plus $25.00 per $10,000.00 on terms of 12 months or less, and 3% plus $25.00 per $10,000.00 on terms of 24 to 60 months.3
- Credit card
Connex Visa credit cards are issued through Elan Financial Services, so a card balance is pursued by Elan against the estate rather than netted at the credit union.1
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- Elan Financial Services
Connex Visa credit cards, as issuer1
Help Connex CU offers survivors1
- Financial Advocates
Connex's Life Events page names "Losing a loved one" as one of the events its Financial Advocates handle. They are available in every branch.1
What Connex CU's agreement and guidance say4
- Payments after the death
Until Connex knows of a member's death it may honor transfer orders, withdrawals, deposits and other transactions. After it knows, it may keep paying checks, drafts and other payments the member authorized for ten days after the death, unless a person claiming an interest in the account tells it to stop.2
- Debts owed to the institution
Connex has a lien on all shares and deposits and may offset them against an obligation in default.2
- Indemnity a claimant may have to give
Connex may require anyone claiming a deceased owner's account funds to indemnify it for any losses resulting from honoring that claim.2
- Dormant and unclaimed accounts
Connex sends a dormant balance to the state as abandoned property under Connecticut law. After that Connex has no further liability, and the claimant applies to the state agency.2
Not in Connex CU's published guidance3
- A procedure for reporting a death
- A claim form
- How long a claim takes
Sources3
Connex CU's Member Service Center can be reached by phone at 1-800-278-6466 and email at ebranch@connexcu.org for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
Data sourced from Connex CU primary sources (27 pages reviewed). How we research.
Connex CU death claims support
Member Service Center
Phone
Toll-free
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Mailing address
Website
Estate planning articles
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Forms for Settling an Estate
Free forms for settling an estate: probate petition, small estate affidavit, creditor notice and closing forms. Prepare each form for your state.
Affidavit of Death
Put a joint owner's or a transfer on death deed owner's death on the land records with the affidavit your state's statute names, laid out for recording.
IRS Form 56
Notify the IRS that you are the fiduciary of an estate, a trust or a person, or end a notice filed before, on the official form.
Digital Assets Recovery Letter
Prepare a letter requesting a deceased person's online accounts, points, and balances from the program that holds them.
Petition for Probate and Letters
Open probate and ask the court to appoint you and issue Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
Notice to Creditors
Notify estate creditors and start the claim period — the published notice plus mailed copies for known creditors.
Renunciation of Executor
Decline an appointment as executor named in a will — the writing filed with the court before anyone is appointed.
Tools for Settling an Estate
Free tools for settling an estate: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool for your state.
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A step-by-step checklist for the days, weeks, and months after a death, with state rules noted where they apply.
