What to do when a Great Southern Bank account holder dies
Report the death to Great Southern Bank's Branch Banking / Customer Service at 1-800-749-7113
When an account holder at Great Southern Bank passes away, the next step depends on how the accounts were set up. Accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer outside of probate. Accounts titled solely in the deceased's name require the estate's legal representative to work with Great Southern Bank's Branch Banking / Customer Service (1-800-749-7113) to access and distribute the funds.
Death claim process
The death claim process at Great Southern Bank works as follows:
Filing a claim
- A certified copy of the death certificate
- Valid government-issued photo ID for the beneficiary, surviving joint owner, successor trustee or personal representative
- Court paperwork or a small-estate affidavit if the account has no POD beneficiary and no joint owner
- The deceased person's full legal name, date of death and Social Security number
- Any Great Southern account numbers you have
- Your relationship to the deceased person (beneficiary, joint owner, successor trustee, executor)
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Valid government-issued photo ID, for the beneficiary, surviving joint owner, executor or successor trustee
- The deceased person's Social Security number and any known Great Southern account numbers
- Confirmation of the POD beneficiary designation on file at the bank, for a payable-on-death account
- The bank's IRA beneficiary claim and distribution election paperwork, for an IRA, SEP IRA, Roth IRA or Coverdell ESACompleted at the branch.
- Certification of Trust or the trust agreement, for a trust accountIncluding the signature and notary pages and any amendments, showing the successor trustee's authority, with the successor trustee's photo ID.
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, for an estate in probate
- The state's small-estate affidavit, for a small estate
Forms Great Southern Bank issues2
What happens to each kind of account7
- Payable-on-death account
The branch releases the funds to the named beneficiary on the death certificate and the beneficiary's photo ID.1
- Joint account with survivorship
The surviving owner presents the death certificate and completes account maintenance paperwork to remove the deceased owner.1
- IRA
IRAs, SEP IRAs, Roth IRAs and Coverdell ESAs are all held as fixed-rate CDs. The named beneficiary presents the death certificate and completes the bank's IRA beneficiary claim and distribution paperwork, and the CD may be closed to fund the distribution.1
- Trust account
The successor trustee presents the death certificate, the Certification of Trust or trust agreement showing the successor trustee's authority, and photo ID.1
- Account in one name
With no POD beneficiary and no joint owner, bring Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, or the state's small-estate affidavit. The bank cannot release the funds until the court paperwork is issued.1
- Safe deposit box
The box is a rental contract with no POD beneficiary, handled at the banking center that holds it. A surviving co-lessee on the lease can open it; otherwise the executor generally needs Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.2
- Loan
A loan balance does not pass with the deposit accounts and must be handled by the estate with Loan Servicing.1
State requirements Great Southern Bank statesIowa
- Iowa
In Iowa, bank fees assessed to a checking account carry sales tax, posted as "sales tax on service charge".3
Accounts handled elsewhere2
- Great Southern Bank Loan Servicing
Mortgage, home equity and consumer loans in the deceased person's name, and payoff quotes1
Phone: 1-888-245-2530
- Great Southern Bank Loan Operations
Notices of error and information requests on a loan account1
Phone: 1-800-749-7113
Mailing address: Great Southern Bank Loan Operations, P.O. Box 5087, Springfield, MO 65801-5087
What Great Southern Bank provides to the estate1
- Payoff statement
A written payoff quote on a Great Southern loan can be requested by email at Payoffs@GreatSouthernBank.com.1
Help Great Southern Bank offers survivors1
- Managing Finances Through the Loss of a Loved One
A module in the bank's Financial Education Center covering "the steps needed to settle the estate of a loved one who has passed away", with sections on first financial steps, the role of the executor, and closing out debts.4
What Great Southern Bank's agreement and guidance say4
- Online access
The Consumer Online Banking Disclosure says under "Assignment": "You may not assign this Agreement. In the event of your death or incapacity, this Agreement is binding upon your heirs, executors and personal representatives."5
- Which state governs the account
The Consumer Online Banking Disclosure is subject to federal law and the law of the State of Missouri, whichever of the six banking-center states the customer lives in.5
- Dormant and unclaimed accounts
The Dormant Account fee is $10.00 per month, so a deceased person's untouched checking or savings account keeps accruing it while probate is pending.3
Not in Great Southern Bank's published guidance4
- A procedure for reporting a death
- A claim form
- An online way to report a death
- Terms in its agreements for a customer's death
Sources5
- 1.Support
- 2.Additional Services
- 3.Personal Fee Schedule, effective August 1, 2026
- 4.Financial Education Center
- 5.Consumer Online Banking Disclosure, VERSION 11.14.2023
A few business days after a branch appointment with the death certificate and photo ID, for POD, joint and beneficiary-designated accounts.
Great Southern Bank's Branch Banking / Customer Service can be reached by phone at 1-800-749-7113 for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
Data sourced from Great Southern Bank primary sources (15 pages reviewed). How we research.
Great Southern Bank death claims support
Branch Banking / Customer Service
Phone
Loan Servicing (decedent loan balances)
Hours
Mailing address
Website
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Affidavit of Death
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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.
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Prepare a letter requesting a deceased person's online accounts, points, and balances from the program that holds them.
Petition for Probate and Letters
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Notice to Creditors
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Renunciation of Executor
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