What to do when a EECU account holder dies
Contact EECU's Trust Services (corporate trustee and fiduciary services provided by Members Trust Company) and EECU Investment & Retirement Services (LPL Financial) — 8-step process, 6 required documents, and joint accounts transfer immediately. pod and trust accounts are typically processed within 2-4 weeks. estate accounts requiring probate documentation may take 30-90 days.
Member Contact Center
EECU, 1617 W Seventh St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
Trust Services (corporate trustee and fiduciary services provided by Members Trust Company) and EECU Investment & Retirement Services (LPL Financial)
Member Contact Center (deceased-member accounts; EECU publishes no separate estate line)
EECU, 1617 W Seventh St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
After a member of EECU dies, the Member Contact Center (deceased-member accounts; EECU publishes no separate estate line) 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.
Death claims at EECU can be started through an online portal, which streamlines the initial notification and document upload. Phone and mail options are also available.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with EECU:
Filing a claim
- Call the Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800
- Visit any EECU financial center in person (https://eecu.org/locations)
- Joint accounts with right of survivorship: surviving joint owner retains full access to the account
- POD accounts: funds are disbursed to the named POD payees upon death of the last surviving account holder
- Trust accounts: ownership passes to the trust beneficiaries upon death of the last surviving trustee
- Accounts without POD, joint owner, or trust: funds pass to the estate and require probate documentation
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID for each claimant or beneficiary
- All affected account numbers (deposit, IRA, HSA, certificate, loan, credit card)
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (when no POD payee, joint owner, or trust designation exists)
- Certificate of Trust or trust document with amendments, plus trustee identification (for trust accounts or when a trust is the POD payee)
- Court-approved Texas Small Estate Affidavit (Estates Code Ch. 205; available where total estate assets are $75,000 or less excluding homestead and exempt property, there is no real property other than a homestead, and all distributees agree) in lieu of Letters when no formal probate is opened
What to know at this institution
EECU restricts withdrawals once it receives notice of death of a person having the right of withdrawal (Account Opening Agreement, Transaction Limitations). Per the same agreement: a single-party account passes to the decedent's estate or to the POD beneficiary; a multiple-party account with right of survivorship vests in the surviving party on the date of death; POD funds pass to the surviving POD payees on the death of the last surviving holder and payment to any one of them discharges EECU from liability to the rest; a POD designation is ineffective on an IRA; and on the death of the last surviving trustee, a trust account passes to the trust beneficiary outside the trustee's will or intestacy. EECU has a lien and security interest in shares (excluding IRAs) for any debt the member owed it, so an EECU loan or credit card balance can be offset against the deposit before funds are released. Do not let accounts go quiet during administration: EECU reports an account as abandoned to the State of Texas after three years of no member-initiated activity or communication, after which the funds must be reclaimed from the state. EECU publishes no dedicated estate or deceased-member phone line, no death claim form, and no estate settlement guide; all death-related matters route through the Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800.
Prepare your letter of instruction to EECU
EECU accepts a claimant-drafted letter of instruction. We draft it for you — addressed to EECU's verified claims department, with the documents it requires enclosed.
Build your letter of instructionHow long the process takes at EECU: Joint accounts transfer immediately. POD and trust accounts are typically processed within 2-4 weeks. Estate accounts requiring probate documentation may take 30-90 days. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
Documentation required by EECU includes Certified copy of the death certificate, Government-issued photo ID for each claimant or beneficiary, and All affected account numbers (deposit, IRA, HSA, certificate, loan, credit card), along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
They are different. EECU does not publish a standalone deposit POD form; POD payees are named on the Account Application or a Payable on Death Agreement at a financial center or by calling the Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800. All account owners must sign, and each payee needs a full legal name, tax ID, date of birth, and percentage. The HSA is the one EECU account with a published beneficiary form: the HSA Beneficiary Designation (https://eecu.org/getmedia/eeb4769c-9b3f-4d4c-985e-c61d4e958983/EECU-HSA-Beneficiary-Designation-Form.pdf.aspx), which is mailed to EECU, P.O. Box 1777, Fort Worth, TX 76101, requires a witness signature, and calls for spousal consent when a married owner names someone other than the spouse — relevant in Texas, a community property state. Per the Account Opening Agreements & Disclosures, a POD account is payable on the death of the last surviving account holder to the named payees, which keeps those funds out of probate.
Possibly. If the deceased member's total estate assets are $75,000 or less (not counting the homestead or exempt property), there is no real property other than a homestead, and all heirs agree, Texas heirs can use a Small Estate Affidavit under Texas Estates Code Chapter 205 to collect funds directly from a financial institution after a probate court approves it. EECU would release the account balance against the court-approved affidavit instead of Letters Testamentary. If the EECU account alone (plus other non-exempt assets) exceeds $75,000, you will generally need Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration from a Texas probate court. Confirm current requirements with the Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800.
EECU opens formal trust accounts for revocable living trusts, and its Account Opening Agreement says it may accept a revocable trust account subject to whatever membership requirements it imposes. If you name a successor trustee who lives outside EECU's 16-county North Texas field of membership, they can still qualify through a family relationship to a member or through a complimentary EECU Community Foundation membership, which replaced the prior associate-membership path (https://eecu.org/about-us/about-eecu/membership-requirements). Confirm eligibility with the Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800 before relying on that person to administer the EECU trust account, so a transfer is not delayed at death. EECU will release trust funds on the signature of any trustee or successor trustee once the trust documentation is on file.
Both keep the account out of probate, but they work differently at EECU. Retitling moves the deposit account into the name of your revocable living trust now, with the trustee controlling it during life and ownership passing to the trust beneficiaries on the death of the last surviving trustee. Naming the trust as POD beneficiary leaves the account in your personal name and pays the balance to the trust on death. The trust-titled option gives the trustee immediate access if you become incapacitated; the POD option is simpler to set up. EECU requires trust documentation (Certificate of Trust or full trust document and photo ID for all trustees) to open a trust-titled account.
Call the EECU Member Contact Center at (817) 882-0800 (Mon-Fri 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM CT, Sat 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM CT) or visit any financial center, and provide a certified copy of the death certificate and the affected account numbers. EECU publishes no separate estate line and no death claim form. It restricts withdrawals once it has notice of death and reviews ownership and POD or trust designations to set the distribution path. IRA funds (Traditional, Roth, and Coverdell ESA) pass to the named IRA beneficiary, which supersedes a will or trust; a POD designation is ineffective on an IRA, and if no IRA beneficiary was named the IRA passes to the estate. If the member owed EECU money on an auto loan, personal loan, or credit card, expect EECU to exercise the lien and right of setoff its Account Opening Agreement gives it against the member's shares — savings, checking, certificate, money market, POD, and revocable trust balances are all pledged, though IRA funds are excluded. EECU also checks for Credit Life & Disability payment protection on the loan.
EECU's Member Contact Center (deceased-member accounts; EECU publishes no separate estate line) can be reached by phone at (817) 882-0800 for questions throughout the claims process.
When the deceased had multiple EECU accounts, some may need separate claims while others can be handled together. The Member Contact Center (deceased-member accounts; EECU publishes no separate estate line) can clarify what's needed for each account type.
Sources
Data sourced from EECU primary sources (32 pages reviewed). How we research.
Member Contact Center
EECU, 1617 W Seventh St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
Trust Services (corporate trustee and fiduciary services provided by Members Trust Company) and EECU Investment & Retirement Services (LPL Financial)
Member Contact Center (deceased-member accounts; EECU publishes no separate estate line)
EECU, 1617 W Seventh St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
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