How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Ledyard Bank
Beneficiaries are managed in branch or by phone. Trust paperwork is taken in branch
The key to protecting your Ledyard Bank accounts is making sure each one has a transfer mechanism in place—either a beneficiary designation or trust ownership. Without one, the account goes through probate, adding time, cost, and court involvement for your family.
With 11 product types, Ledyard Bank offers a range of transfer options. Some accounts support Payable on Death (POD) designations, others can be retitled into a trust, and some require probate if no beneficiary is designated. The sections below break down each step.
Beneficiary form at Ledyard Bank
Pay-on-Death beneficiary designation (for payable-on-death accounts) and IRA beneficiary designation form (for IRAs).
- Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship
- Primary and contingent beneficiaries
- Percentage allocation where more than one beneficiary is named; the account agreement pays two or more surviving POD beneficiaries in equal shares regardless
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number and relationship (for each primary and contingent beneficiary)
- Government-issued photo ID (at a financial center). The Consumer Account Disclosure states that when you open an account Ledyard asks for name, address, date of birth and other identifying information, and may ask to see a driver's license or other identifying documents
- Completed beneficiary designation form (returned to a financial center). A separate form is used for IRA beneficiaries and for deposit-account POD beneficiaries
- Full trust agreement or a Certificate of Trust (Certification of Trust)
- Government-issued photo ID for all trustees
- Trust tax identification number (EIN), or the grantor SSN for a revocable trust
- Open accounts in the trust name (for example, "John Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Revocable Trust")
- Existing accounts may need to be closed and reopened in the trust name
- On a Vermont account, ask whether the account is being set up under the Vermont "Revocable Trust Only" category
Required Documents
- Full trust agreement or Certificate of Trust. Either is accepted. A Certificate of Trust is also called a Certification of Trust or Abstract of Trust
- Government-issued photo ID (for all trustees). The Consumer Account Disclosure states that when you open an account Ledyard asks for name, address, date of birth and other identifying information and may ask to see a driver's license or other identifying documents
- Trust tax identification number. An EIN, or the grantor's SSN for a revocable trust
- Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship
- Primary and contingent beneficiaries
- Percentage allocation where more than one beneficiary is named; the account agreement pays two or more surviving POD beneficiaries in equal shares regardless
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number and relationship (for each primary and contingent beneficiary)
- Government-issued photo ID (at a financial center). The Consumer Account Disclosure states that when you open an account Ledyard asks for name, address, date of birth and other identifying information, and may ask to see a driver's license or other identifying documents
- Completed beneficiary designation form (returned to a financial center). A separate form is used for IRA beneficiaries and for deposit-account POD beneficiaries
What Ledyard Bank says about beneficiaries and trusts
Each section is Ledyard Bank's own statement, with the document it comes from numbered under Sources.
Which accounts take a beneficiary2
Who can be named1
- A trust, IRAs
An IRA can name a trust as beneficiary.1
How many beneficiaries, and how shares are split
- Payable-on-death account
Two or more surviving POD beneficiaries take the account in equal shares without right of survivorship, even where a percentage allocation is written on the form. An unequal split cannot be made through a POD designation.2
Beneficiary forms Ledyard Bank issues2
What Ledyard Bank's agreement says about beneficiaries2
- A beneficiary who dies first
A POD beneficiary cannot withdraw until at least 90 days after the death of the last surviving account owner, and must be living at that point.2
- Joint accounts
A Revocable Trust or Pay-on-Death account created by two or more owners is held jointly with survivorship between those owners.2
State requirements Ledyard Bank statesNew Hampshire, Vermont
- New Hampshire
Ledyard applies separate New Hampshire and Vermont ownership rule sets, keyed to the state of the branch.2
- Vermont
Ledyard applies a separate Vermont ownership rule set, keyed to the state of the branch. It adds a fourth condition: within the 90-day window the bank must not have been served with process by the account holder's personal representative or with an order from the probate court prohibiting payment.2
The Vermont rule set also recognizes a Joint Fiduciary designated under a separate Declaration of Intent filed with the bank. That fiduciary can transact but holds no ownership or survivorship right unless the account agreement provides one.2
Which accounts a trust can hold2
What Ledyard Bank says about trust accounts1
- Whether a new account is opened
Accounts are opened in the trust name (for example, "John Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Revocable Trust"). Existing accounts may need to be closed and reopened in the trust name.1
State requirements Ledyard Bank statesVermont
- Vermont
On a Vermont account, Ledyard has a "Revocable Trust Only" ownership category with its own payout rule at the death of the surviving trustee.2
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- Ledyard Wealth Management
Trustee, co-trustee, successor trustee and corporate trustee services through its Investment and Trust Services Division3
Phone: 1-603-643-0044
Fax: 1-603-643-6271
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM ET
Mailing address: 2 Maple Street, Hanover, NH 03755
Not in Ledyard Bank's published guidance2
- A beneficiary form to download
- An online way to name a beneficiary
Sources3
- 1.Contact Us
- 2.Consumer Account Disclosure, effective September 1, 2026
- 3.Ledyard Wealth Management
Sources
Data sourced from Ledyard Bank primary sources (19 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Ledyard Bank instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Ledyard Bank primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Ledyard Bank estate support
Investment and Trust Services Division (Ledyard Wealth Management)
Phone
Scott Coulter, CFP, SVP Chief Wealth Planning Officer
Valerie J. Nevel, Esq., Senior Financial Advisor
Wealth Management, Concord (1 Pillsbury Street, Suite 303)
Wealth Management / Private Banking, New London
Fax
Hours
Mailing address
Website
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