What to do when a CU1 account holder dies

On the owner's death, or the final owner's death on a joint account, the payable-on-death payee "may claim the funds in the account upon presenting proof of death and ID." Several payees share equally unless the owner asked CU1 to record percentages.¹

The surviving owner or owners own the funds. On the death of the final owner, the funds belong to that owner's estate.¹

With no beneficiary and no surviving owner, the funds may be claimed by the estate's representative or by a claimant such as a creditor or relative. Any representative or claimant is bound by the agreement's terms.¹

A successor trustee must deliver proof satisfactory to CU1 of their succession and authority. Until CU1 verifies it, a successor trustee has no rights to the account or its funds.¹

An account holding an estate's funds falls under the agreement's Accounts for Fiduciary Purposes provision. To open one, CU1 "may require and review a copy of the documentation addressing the fiduciary purpose, and your ID and authority to act as a fiduciary for that purpose."¹

The first name on the estate account's record generally must match the SSN or EIN certified for the estate.¹

A certificate renews automatically at maturity for the same term unless a change is made during the 10-day grace period.¹

An IRA is claimed through its IRA beneficiary designation, which is kept separate from any payable-on-death designation on a deposit account.¹

CU1 "may continue to honor all actions and transactions on an account, product or service until we receive a certified copy of an owner's death certificate" with proof of the claimant's authority and identification.¹

Until that package arrives, a joint owner, an attorney-in-fact or a transactor can keep transacting on the account.¹

An attorney-in-fact's authority runs until CU1 has written notice of the death and a reasonable opportunity to act. The agreement puts the duty to tell CU1 of the member's death on the attorney-in-fact.¹

Under the agreement's Waiver of Testamentary Account Distributions, the member waives, where state law permits, the right to make testamentary dispositions from any account.¹

Joint ownership with survivorship and payable-on-death designations control over any inconsistent will, and on a death CU1 relies only on the agreement and its own records.¹

CU1 "may require a representative of an owner's estate or claimant to indemnify, defend us against and hold us harmless before we will release the funds." The same provision makes every owner responsible for legal advice CU1 requires in connection with a claim on the account.¹

If an owner owes CU1 money, the owner's funds "may be used to repay the owner's obligations to us before any funds are distributed to the representative of the estate or claimant." A security interest granted by an owner continues to secure that owner's obligation after death.¹

CU1's lien and set-off reach deposit funds regardless of source, including directly deposited Social Security, and survive the owner's death. They do not reach retirement accounts.¹

CU1 may honor a claim "by issuing our check payable to" the claimant.¹

Where there is a dispute or uncertainty about who is entitled to the funds, CU1 may hold them or deposit them with a court at its discretion.¹

The agreement lists "notification of death" among the circumstances in which CU1 may act on the membership relationship, alongside "the owner for IRS reporting is removed or deceased."¹

Following the June 1, 2026 merger, MAC Federal Credit Union accounts remain separate from CU1 accounts for now.²