What to do when a Georgia's Own account holder dies
Report the death to Georgia's Own's Deceased Accounts at 1-800-533-2062
The Deceased Accounts at Georgia's Own 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
To file a claim after an account holder's death, here is what Georgia's Own requires:
Filing a claim
- By phone: 800.533.2062
- By email: deceasedacctnotifications@georgiasown.org
- By mail: Georgia's Own Credit Union, 100 Peachtree Street NW, Suite 2800, Atlanta, GA 30303, Attn: Deceased Accounts
- In person at a branch
- Where there is no co-borrower, ask about confirming successor-in-interest status, which carries rights to notices, information and a possible refinance application
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID, for each beneficiary, surviving owner or claimant
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, where the account has no POD or beneficiary designation and no surviving joint owner
- Original Letters Testamentary or Administration, to open the estate accountThe Survivor's Guide states this more broadly as court documents designating an estate executor or administrator.
- Executor's identification, to open the estate account
- IRS letter with the EIN issued for the estate, to open the estate account
- Completed estate account application, to open the estate accountSigned in person at a branch.
- Trust documents and trustee identification, where a trust is the named beneficiary
- The insurer's own claim submission, for a Payment Protection Plan claimThrough the TruStage lending-claim portal for contract 01006595, or CUNA Mutual Group at 800.621.6323, rather than credit union paperwork.
- Documentation validating the property ownership interest under state law, for a mortgage, fixed equity or home equity action
- Copy of the death certificate or an obituary, for a private student loan or student refinance loan, sent to Student Choice
Claims Contact
Website: Online portal →
What happens to each kind of account9
- Account in one name
With no POD designation and no joint owner, the funds go to the estate, and the executor or administrator must produce Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.1
- Joint account with survivorship
On a "Joint Account" all sums pass to the surviving owner or owners, who may keep using it until it is closed or retitled. The survivor's interest stays subject to the credit union's statutory lien for the deceased owner's obligations and to any pledge the deceased owner granted.1
- Joint account without survivorship
On a "Joint Account--No Survivorship" the deceased owner's interest passes to the estate, and no checks should be written from it after the date of death.1
- Payable-on-death account
On an individual account with a POD designation, the funds are paid directly to the surviving named beneficiaries, in equal portions where more than one survives.1
On a joint account with a POD designation, the funds go to the surviving joint owner or owners first. Only when all owners have died are the funds paid to the beneficiaries.1
- Certificate of deposit
An individual owner's certificate is paid to the estate or next of kin. A surviving joint owner may move the funds "as is" into a new certificate with the original rate and maturity date, or cash the certificate in without penalty.1
- IRA
Closed without a Georgia's Own penalty and paid to the named beneficiaries. A spouse may take the funds as their own into an IRA in their name; another beneficiary receives an IRA beneficiary account, and a Deposit Account Specialist explains the options.1
- Fiduciary account
The estate account is a checking account with a companion savings account carrying the $5 minimum; the assets typically sit in savings and move to checking as taxes and debts come due. The guide also says it can be a savings, checking, money market or certificate product.1
Estate accounts are eligible for online banking but are not issued debit cards. Checks are ordered in the name of the estate, with the executor's name on the second line.1
- Loan
Consumer loan interest is deferred during settlement, Payment Protection Plan coverage applies from the death, and the co-signer, co-borrower or estate owes the balance. A sole borrower's home equity line closes to new draws; a co-borrowed line stays open, but the credit union may ask about plans for the property.1
A private student loan co-signer stays liable if the loan was originated before November 1, 2018 and is released if on or after. On a student refinance loan from that date, the co-signer is released only if a federal student loan was refinanced; otherwise the co-signer stays liable.1
- Credit card
A primary cardholder's individual card account is closed; a joint cardholder account can stay open and be retitled after a relationship review. An authorized user is not liable, but a joint cardholder is, including for charges posting after the date of death.1
State law on paying a balance without lettersGeorgia
- Georgia
O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239
Georgia law permits a credit union to pay from a deceased member's balance on an affidavit, without letters testamentary or letters of administration.O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239Verified Oct 3, 2026View source
Paid to: the surviving spouse; else the children; else the father and mother; else the brothers and sisters (subsection (b))
Limit: $15,000 held at the institution
Paid to: providers of funeral services and of services for the last illness (subsection (c))
Limit: $15,000 held at the institution
When: if no application for the deposit is made by any person named in subsection (b) of this Code section within 45 days from the death of the intestate depositor
The section applies where the person died without a will. The section permits the payment. It does not require the credit union to make it. The section sets further conditions.
Accounts handled elsewhere7
- Member First Mortgage
Georgia's Own mortgages opened after June 15, 20201
Phone: 1-866-898-1818
- Cenlar
Georgia's Own mortgages opened before June 15, 20201
Phone: 1-800-223-6527
- Payment Recovery Team, Loss Mitigation Specialists
A new primary borrower who may not be able to afford the mortgage payments1
Phone: 1-800-533-2062
- Student Choice
Private student loans and student refinance loans1
Phone: 1-877-530-9782
- CUNA Mutual Group
Payment Protection Plan claims1
Phone: 1-800-621-6323
- TruStage lending claim portal
Payment Protection Plan claims under Georgia's Own contract 010065952
Mailing address: Claims, P.O. Box 5010, Madison, WI 53705-0010
- Georgia's Own Investment & Retirement Services
Investment and retirement accounts, offered through LPL Financial, with access through Account View by LPL Financial3
Phone: 1-404-253-9703
What Georgia's Own provides to the estate1
- Statement copies
An estate administrator who is neither a joint owner nor a member can receive up to three months of statements at no cost, once court or probate documentation is produced.1
What Georgia's Own's agreement and guidance say7
- Payments after the death
Under section 30 of the agreement, the credit union may keep paying checks or drafts drawn on the deceased member's account for ten days after the death unless someone claiming an interest tells it to stop payment.4
- What it does when notified
Once it has proof of death, the credit union cancels the deceased member's debit and credit cards automatically. A surviving joint owner's own debit card keeps working while a "Joint Account" stays open.1
As a courtesy, the deceased member is removed from all active checking accounts to limit disruption to recurring items, unless the surviving owner asks otherwise.4
- Deposits after the death
Direct deposits from paying agencies such as the Veterans Administration, Teachers Retirement System or Social Security that arrive on or after the date of death must be returned by the credit union.1
- Debts owed to the institution
Where a loan or card balance is owed, the deposit accounts may be subjected to a right of offset to satisfy it.1
- What it says about taxes
Georgia's Own says reporting to the IRS continues under the deceased person's Social Security number until each account is closed or retitled, and recommends settling as soon as possible.1
- Who can get account information
An estate administrator who is neither a joint owner nor a member is entitled to account information once court or probate documentation is produced.1
- Membership
An estate account can be opened even when the deceased person was not a member, provided all beneficiaries of the estate are members. The executor or administrator need not already be a member but must qualify for membership.1
After a member's death the family stays eligible to join: spouses, parents, children (natural born, step and adopted), siblings, grandparents and grandchildren. Once they have joined they can extend membership to their own immediate family.1
Not in Georgia's Own's published guidance1
- How long a claim takes
Georgia's Own's Deceased Accounts can be reached by phone at 1-800-533-2062 and email at deceasedacctnotifications@georgiasown.org for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
(1)·
Data sourced from Georgia's Own primary sources (15 pages reviewed). How we research.
Georgia's Own death claims support
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