What to do when a First Commonwealth account holder dies
Report the death to First Commonwealth's Engagement Center at 1-800-711-2265
After an account holder at First Commonwealth dies, accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer to the designated recipients without probate. Solely-owned accounts require the estate's representative to contact First Commonwealth's Engagement Center at 1-800-711-2265 with the proper legal authority documents.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with First Commonwealth:
Filing a claim
Required Documents
- Death certificateListed as "Death Certificate (always required)".
- Government-issued photo ID for the person handling the estate
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, if the estate is probated
- Court appointment document, to open an estate account as executor or administratorThe bank names a Short Certificate in Pennsylvania, or Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration in Ohio.
- Trust agreement or certification of trust, and the trustee's ID, for accounts titled in a trust
- Small estate affidavit or petition, if the estate is eligible under state law and no probate is opened
What happens to each kind of account6
- Joint account with survivorship
A joint account is held as joint tenants with right of survivorship, not as tenants in common. When one owner dies, all sums in the account on the date of death belong to the surviving owners and are not part of the deceased owner's estate.1
- Payable-on-death account
On an in-trust-for account, the funds are payable only after every person who created the account has died, to a beneficiary then living. Two or more surviving beneficiaries take equal shares, with no right of survivorship between them.2
- Fiduciary account
The bank holds fiduciary accounts as custodian only. It may require a copy of the trust agreement or other documents confirming a successor trustee's authority.2
- Certificate of deposit
The agreement waives the early withdrawal penalty on the death of a CD owner or of the grantor of a revocable family or living trust, so the estate is not charged 90 to 900 days of interest to break the CD.1
- Loan
Loan payments continue to be due while the estate is settled.2
- Representative payee account
The agreement obliges a representative payee to notify the bank when the beneficiary dies and stop all further deposits and withdrawals. If the government demands the return of deposits made after the death and the account is short, the bank may take the funds from any account owned by the payee or the beneficiary.1
If the deceased person was a representative payee for someone else's federal benefits, notify the bank and stop all further deposits to and withdrawals from that account.2
State law on paying a balance without lettersPennsylvania
- Pennsylvania
20 Pa.C.S. § 3101(b)
Pennsylvania law directs a bank to pay from a deceased depositor's balance on an affidavit, without letters testamentary or letters of administration.20 Pa.C.S. § 3101(b)Verified Oct 3, 2026View source
Limit: $20,000 held at the institution
When: at any time after the death of a depositor, member or certificate holder
Paid to: the spouse; any child; the father or mother; any sister or brother
The section sets further conditions.
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- First Commonwealth Wealth Management trust and estate team
Accounts titled in a trust, and estates where First Commonwealth Wealth Management serves as fiduciary3
What First Commonwealth's agreement and guidance say7
- Telling the institution
The Deposit Account Agreement asks the customer to "[t]ell us immediately if any account owner or signatory dies or is declared incompetent by a court".1
- Payments after the death
After a depositor dies the balance is payable in accordance with applicable law. The bank may pay checks and process transfer orders the deceased depositor authorized "for a period of 10 days, or as otherwise provided under applicable law, after the date of death".1
- Debts owed to the institution
If the deceased person owed the bank a debt, the bank may use its right of setoff or security interest against the balance after death, even where a surviving joint owner, a payable-on-death payee, or an in-trust-for beneficiary has rights to the account.1
- Deposits after the death
If federal or state benefit payments, including Social Security, are deposited after the account holder became ineligible and the bank must return them to the payer, it may recover them from any of the accounts.1
- Disputes between claimants
If more than one person claims a joint account, the bank may suspend or close the account, require a court order, or require all joint owners to agree in writing before it acts.1
- What it does when notified
When the sole signer on a business organization account dies, the bank may freeze the balance, refuse transactions, and reverse or return deposits. It need not release the funds until it receives the documents it requests verifying the death and a new signer's authority.1
- Dormant and unclaimed accounts
An account inactive for 12 months or more stays subject to service charges, including an inactivity fee. One inactive for 36 months or more may be treated as abandoned property and transferred away, after which it is reclaimed from the state rather than the bank.1
Not in First Commonwealth's published guidance2
- A claim form to download
- Whether the death certificate must be certified
Sources3
- 1.Deposit Account Agreement, 05/12/2026
- 2.Contact Us
- 3.Trust and Estate Planning
First Commonwealth's Engagement Center can be reached by phone at 1-800-711-2265 and email at engage@fcbanking.com for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
Data sourced from First Commonwealth primary sources (20 pages reviewed). How we research.
First Commonwealth death claims support
Engagement Center
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