What to do when a OnPoint Community CU account holder dies
Contact OnPoint Community CU — 8-step process, 9 required documents, and onpoint may keep honoring items the deceased authorized for ten days after death unless it receives written stop-payment instructions (section 26). a pod payee or surviving joint owner can usually be paid once the certified death certificate and id are presented. the ors 723.466 credit-union affidavit route is immediate for a surviving spouse, but no earlier than 46 days after death for other heirs (76 days absent prior state authorization). oregon's simple estate affidavit cannot be filed until 30 days after death; washington's until 40. full probate runs on the court's clock. an account with no activity or contact for three years is presumed abandoned and remitted to the state (section 23).
OnPoint Member Services
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
OnPoint Member Services
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
OnPoint Member Services (OnPoint does not publish a separate estate-claims department; deceased-member accounts are handled through Member Services and the branches)
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
After a member of OnPoint Community CU dies, the OnPoint Member Services (OnPoint does not publish a separate estate-claims department; deceased-member accounts are handled through Member Services and the branches) 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.
To start, call OnPoint Community CU at 1-503-228-7077. Have the account holder's full name, account numbers, and a certified death certificate ready before you call.
Death claim process
Here is the step-by-step death claim process at OnPoint Community CU:
Filing a claim
- Call 503-228-7077 or 800-527-3932, or go into a branch, and bring or send a certified copy of the death certificate
- Until OnPoint receives notice of the death it may honor every transfer, withdrawal, and deposit on the account without liability — so an autopay or a debit card in a relative's hands keeps draining the account until you speak up
- Even AFTER OnPoint is notified of the death, it may keep paying checks, drafts, and other payment or transfer orders the deceased member authorized, for ten days after death
- The only way to stop that is written instructions from a person claiming an interest in the account telling OnPoint to stop payment
- So when you notify OnPoint, put the stop-payment request in writing at the same time if outstanding checks or automatic payments are a concern
- Once notified, OnPoint may place a hold on the account and refuse withdrawals until it knows the identity of the successor
- It may require anyone claiming a deceased owner's funds to indemnify OnPoint against losses resulting from honoring the claim — so read what you are asked to sign
- The agreement is binding on the heirs and legal representatives of any account owner
- POD account: when the LAST owner dies, the funds belong to the surviving POD payee(s) (Section 3.c; ORS 723.480(2)(b)). Present the certified death certificate and photo ID. Multiple payees take jointly and equally with rights of survivorship unless the designation says otherwise
- Joint account with right of survivorship: the surviving owner keeps the account (Section 3.b). But note the sting — the survivor's interest remains subject to OnPoint's statutory lien for the DECEASED owner's obligations and to any pledge the deceased owner granted, even if the survivor never consented to it
- Joint account WITHOUT right of survivorship: the deceased owner's share goes to the estate
- Individual account with no POD and no joint owner: it goes to the estate (Section 3.a) — this is the account that forces the probate/affidavit question below
- Trust account: the successor trustee takes over, on written notice of the trustee change plus evidence of authority (Section 3.f) — usually a certification of trust naming the successor
- IRA, IRA certificate, or HSA: POD does not apply. The beneficiary completes the separate IRA/HSA beneficiary distribution paperwork; these accounts are also outside OnPoint's lien and setoff rights (Section 15)
- ORS 723.466 (the credit-union statute, and the one people miss): if the deceased member's deposit at the credit union is $25,000 OR LESS, OnPoint MAY pay it out on an affidavit without any court. The affidavit must state where and when the member died, that the member's total deposits in all Oregon financial institutions do not exceed $25,000, the affiant's relationship to the member, and a promise to pay the expenses of last sickness and funeral. A SURVIVING SPOUSE may demand payment at any time after death; an adult child, then a parent, then an adult sibling, then any other heir may be paid, but no earlier than 46 days after death (and, absent prior authorization from the Oregon Health Authority and the Department of Human Services, no earlier than 76 days). The statute says the credit union MAY pay — it is permissive, not a right, so ask OnPoint directly
- ORS 114.505 to 114.560 (the SIMPLE ESTATE AFFIDAVIT — Oregon's current name for the small estate affidavit): available when not more than $75,000 of the estate's fair market value is personal property other than manufactured homes AND not more than $200,000 is real property and manufactured homes combined (ORS 114.510). It may not be filed until 30 DAYS after death, and it is FILED WITH THE CLERK OF THE PROBATE COURT in a county with venue (ORS 114.515) — unlike some states, an Oregon affidavit is a court filing, not a form you hand straight to the bank
- Deliver a CERTIFIED COPY of the filed affidavit to OnPoint. Under ORS 114.535, a person holding the decedent's personal property must turn it over to the affiant on receipt of the certified copy, and doing so discharges them from liability just as if they had paid the personal representative
- A Washington-resident member (Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, or Skamania County) uses RCW 11.62.010 instead: $100,000 of probate personal property, 40 days after death
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID for the person claiming the funds
- For a POD payee: nothing further — the death certificate and ID establish the claim (Section 3.c)
- For a successor trustee: written notice of the trustee change plus evidence of authority, typically a certification of trust naming the successor (Section 3.f)
- For a personal representative: certified Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (and, to open an estate account, the fiduciary account paperwork under Section 3.g)
- For the Oregon no-probate routes: a certified copy of the FILED simple estate affidavit (ORS 114.515/114.535), or the ORS 723.466 affidavit stating the member's total Oregon deposits do not exceed $25,000, the affiant's relationship, and a promise to pay last-illness and funeral expenses
- For a Washington-resident member: the RCW 11.62.010 affidavit, no sooner than 40 days after death
- For IRA, IRA certificate, and HSA accounts: OnPoint's separate IRA or HSA beneficiary distribution paperwork
- Written stop-payment instruction, if checks or automatic payments are outstanding (Section 26)
What to know at this institution
OnPoint publishes no dedicated estate-claims department or claims portal; the estate process runs through Member Services (503-228-7077 / 800-527-3932) and the branches, and the controlling terms are in the Membership & Account Agreement effective April 1, 2026. Two OnPoint-specific traps: (1) Section 26's ten-day window, in which OnPoint may continue paying checks and transfer orders the deceased member authorized even after being told of the death, unless someone claiming an interest instructs it in writing to stop — a written stop-payment request should accompany the notice of death; and (2) Section 15's lien and setoff, which reaches a deceased member's deposits (and even a surviving joint owner's interest, per Section 3.b) to satisfy what the member owed OnPoint, though it cannot touch IRA, HSA, or other tax-qualified retirement accounts. On the Oregon side, ORS 723.466 is the statute most families never hear about: a credit union may pay out deposits of $25,000 or less on an affidavit, to a surviving spouse immediately and to other heirs after 46 days, with no court filing at all. Above that, Oregon's simple estate affidavit (ORS 114.505-114.560) covers up to $75,000 of personal property and $200,000 of real property and manufactured homes, but it is FILED WITH THE PROBATE COURT and delivered to OnPoint as a certified copy (ORS 114.535).
Prepare your letter of instruction to OnPoint Community CU
OnPoint Community CU accepts a claimant-drafted letter of instruction. We draft it for you — addressed to OnPoint Community CU's verified claims department, with the documents it requires enclosed.
Build your letter of instructionExpected timelines at OnPoint Community CU: OnPoint may keep honoring items the deceased authorized for ten days after death unless it receives written stop-payment instructions (Section 26). A POD payee or surviving joint owner can usually be paid once the certified death certificate and ID are presented. The ORS 723.466 credit-union affidavit route is immediate for a surviving spouse, but no earlier than 46 days after death for other heirs (76 days absent prior state authorization). Oregon's simple estate affidavit cannot be filed until 30 days after death; Washington's until 40. Full probate runs on the court's clock. An account with no activity or contact for three years is presumed abandoned and remitted to the state (Section 23). Delays are almost always caused by incomplete paperwork—gathering all required documents before filing the initial claim helps avoid back-and-forth.
OnPoint Community CU requires several documents to process a claim, including Certified copy of the death certificate, Government-issued photo ID for the person claiming the funds, and For a POD payee: nothing further — the death certificate and ID establish the claim (Section 3.c), and additional documentation depending on the account type. Certified copies are typically needed—photocopies are generally not accepted for death certificates or court documents.
Frequently asked questions
Because the Membership & Account Agreement lets it. Section 26 (Death or Incompetence) says that even AFTER OnPoint receives notice of a member's death, it may continue to pay checks, drafts, and other payment or transfer orders the deceased member authorized for a period of ten days after death — unless a person claiming an interest in the account instructs it in writing to stop payment. A phone call reporting the death does not end that window. Put the stop-payment instruction in writing at the same time you give notice, and identify the outstanding checks or automatic payments you want stopped. Before OnPoint is notified at all, its protection is even broader: it may honor every transfer, withdrawal, and deposit on the account without liability.
Often, yes, and Oregon gives credit union members an extra route. ORS 723.466 lets a credit union pay a deceased member's deposits of $25,000 or less on a sworn affidavit with no court filing at all: a surviving spouse may demand payment at any time after death, and an adult child, parent, adult sibling, or other heir may be paid no earlier than 46 days after death (76 days absent prior authorization from the Oregon Health Authority and the Department of Human Services). The affidavit must state that the member's total deposits in all Oregon financial institutions do not exceed $25,000 and must promise to pay the expenses of last sickness and funeral. The statute is permissive — OnPoint MAY pay — so ask. Above that, Oregon's SIMPLE ESTATE AFFIDAVIT (ORS 114.505 to 114.560, the statute's current name for the small estate affidavit) covers estates with not more than $75,000 of personal property other than manufactured homes and not more than $200,000 of real property and manufactured homes combined. It cannot be filed until 30 days after death, and — unlike in many states — it is FILED WITH THE CLERK OF THE PROBATE COURT (ORS 114.515). You then deliver a certified copy to OnPoint, which under ORS 114.535 must turn the funds over to the affiant. A POD designation skips all of this. A member living in Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, or Skamania County, Washington uses RCW 11.62.010 instead: $100,000 of probate personal property, 40 days after death.
From the deposit accounts, generally yes. Section 15 of the Membership & Account Agreement gives OnPoint a statutory lien and a consensual security interest in a member's shares and deposits, and Section 3.a makes the transfer of a deceased owner's interest — including to a POD payee — expressly subject to those statutory-lien and setoff rights. Section 3.b goes further: a SURVIVING JOINT OWNER's interest remains subject to OnPoint's lien for the deceased owner's obligations and to any pledge the deceased owner granted, even if the survivor never consented to it. There are real carve-outs, though: the lien does not reach IRA, HSA, or other tax-qualified retirement accounts, and it does not reach consumer credit card obligations. So a deceased member's IRA passes to its named beneficiary intact even if an OnPoint loan is outstanding.
Written notice and proof of authority. Under Section 3.f (Accounts for Formal Trusts), the trustee agrees to notify OnPoint IN WRITING if a change of trustee occurs, and OnPoint may withhold payment of funds to any party until proper evidence of the trustee's authority is provided. The agreement names a CERTIFICATION OF TRUST expressly as acceptable evidence, so you generally do not have to hand over the entire trust agreement. Two other clauses matter: OnPoint may rely on the direction of any ONE trustee (and release funds to one trustee acting alone) until it receives written notice that the trust has been revoked; and it does not act as trustee and has no duty to inquire into a trustee's powers. Note also that OnPoint's POD designation does not apply to an account held in the name of a trust (Section 3.c) — the trust document, not a POD payee, decides who takes.
It may waive it, but the waiver is discretionary — ask for it. The certificate terms in the Membership & Account Agreement set the penalty schedule at 90 days of interest (3-14 month terms), 180 days (15-24 month), and 270 days (25-60 month), then list exceptions: "At our option, we may pay the account before maturity without imposing an early-withdrawal penalty ... when an account owner dies or is determined legally incompetent." A parallel exception covers an IRA where the owner dies, becomes disabled, or has reached age 59 1/2 and is taking a normal distribution. Because the waiver is at OnPoint's option rather than automatic, a beneficiary or personal representative should raise it explicitly. If the money is not needed immediately, leaving the certificate to run to maturity avoids the question entirely.
OnPoint Community CU's OnPoint Member Services (OnPoint does not publish a separate estate-claims department; deceased-member accounts are handled through Member Services and the branches) can be reached by phone at 1-800-527-3932 for questions throughout the claims process.
When the deceased had multiple OnPoint Community CU accounts, some may need separate claims while others can be handled together. The OnPoint Member Services (OnPoint does not publish a separate estate-claims department; deceased-member accounts are handled through Member Services and the branches) can clarify what's needed for each account type.
Sources
Data sourced from OnPoint Community CU primary sources (16 pages reviewed). How we research.
OnPoint Member Services
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
OnPoint Member Services
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
OnPoint Member Services (OnPoint does not publish a separate estate-claims department; deceased-member accounts are handled through Member Services and the branches)
OnPoint Community Credit Union, P.O. Box 3750, Portland, OR 97208
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