What to do when a Dakotaland FCU account holder dies
Report the death to Dakotaland FCU's Member Services at 1-800-440-6573
After a member of Dakotaland FCU dies, the Member Services manages the transfer of accounts. POD-designated and trust-owned accounts pass directly to beneficiaries. Accounts held solely in the member's name may require probate court documents—Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration—before funds can be released.
The first step is contacting Dakotaland FCU at 1-605-352-2845 with the account holder's full name, account numbers, and the death certificate in hand.
Death claim process
To file a claim after an account holder's death, here is what Dakotaland FCU requires:
Filing a claim
What happens to each kind of account8
- Account in one name
An account in one member's name goes at death to the member's estate, or to the POD or trust beneficiaries named on it, after the credit union's lien and any pledge the member gave.1
- Joint account with survivorship
A joint account goes to the surviving owners unless the Account Card says it has no survivorship. What the survivor takes is still subject to the lien for the deceased owner's debts to Dakotaland.1
- Joint account without survivorship
Where a joint account was opened without survivorship, the deceased owner's share goes to that owner's estate.1
- Payable-on-death account
A POD account is paid to the beneficiaries living when the last owner dies. Two or more of them share it equally, with no survivorship between them, and Dakotaland does not have to tell a beneficiary the account exists.1
- Custodial account (UTMA/UGMA)
When the custodian of a UTMA account dies, Dakotaland may freeze the account until someone with legal authority gives instructions or a court order allows withdrawals.1
- Certificate of deposit
Cashing a certificate before maturity normally forfeits 180 days of dividends on a term under 12 months and 365 days on a longer one. The credit union may choose to pay it out early with no penalty when an owner dies.1
- IRA
A POD designation does not reach an IRA, and the lien and pledge do not apply to one.1
- Debt protection, GAP or service contract
Debt Protection, where the borrower bought it on a loan, may cancel the loan balance or payments on the borrower's death. Life Plus adds the death of a dependent who is not otherwise covered.2
What Dakotaland FCU's agreement and guidance say8
- Payments after the death
Until it learns of the death, Dakotaland may carry out every transaction on the account. Once it knows, it may still pay the member's checks for ten days after the death unless someone with an interest in the account asks it to stop them.1
- Indemnity a claimant may have to give
Anyone who claims money from a deceased owner's account may be asked to cover the credit union's losses from paying that claim. The agreement binds the owner's heirs and legal representatives.1
- Debts owed to the institution
Dakotaland holds a lien on the member's shares and deposits and may apply them to a debt in default, or freeze them to protect the lien, without further notice.1
- Wills, probate and small estates
A member can ask the credit union to set up an account to carry out a trust, a will or a court order. It gives no legal advice on the arrangement and may refuse an instruction it sees as a risk, or ask for an indemnity or a bond first.1
- Disputes between claimants
When owners disagree or give conflicting instructions, the credit union may suspend or close the account until it has a court order or the written consent of every owner.1
- Which state governs the account
The agreement is governed by the credit union's bylaws, federal law and South Dakota law, and a suit over it is brought in the county where the credit union is located.1
- Membership
Membership is open to people who live, work, worship or attend school in 51 South Dakota counties, and to businesses and other legal entities located there.3
- Fees
Account research costs $25.00 an hour with a $15.00 minimum, and a statement copy or account history printout is $2.00.4
Not in Dakotaland FCU's published guidance9
- A procedure for reporting a death
- A department for deceased-customer accounts
- A claim form
- A list of required documents
- Whether the death certificate must be certified
- Which court appointment document it accepts
- An online way to report a death
- How long a claim takes
- A small-estate procedure
Sources4
- 1.Membership Agreement and Disclosures, 04000077-D1000-C-1-041125
- 2.Warranty & Protection
- 3.Eligibility/Field of Membership
- 4.Other Fees
Dakotaland FCU's Member Services can be reached by phone at 1-800-440-6573 and fax at 1-605-352-2852 for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
(4)·
Data sourced from Dakotaland FCU primary sources (38 pages reviewed). How we research.
Dakotaland FCU death claims support
Member Services
Phone
Toll-free
Fax
Mailing address
Website
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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.
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