How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Tower FCU
Covers 11 deposit, 5 retirement, 1 investment, 2 insurance, and 10 lending accounts — beneficiaries must be updated in-branch
Member Service Center
Tower Federal Credit Union, P.O. Box 123, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0123
Member Service Center
Tower Federal Credit Union, P.O. Box 123, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0123
Member Case Settlement Department
Tower Federal Credit Union, ATTN: Member Case Settlement Department, 7901 Sandy Spring Rd, Laurel, MD 20707
There are two ways to keep your Tower FCU accounts out of probate: adding Payable on Death designations and retitling accounts into a trust. Because Tower FCU is a membership-based institution, trust retitling must maintain the membership eligibility requirement. Both methods ensure your accounts transfer directly to the people you choose, without court involvement.
Tower FCU has 29 accounts with different estate transfer rules. Here is how beneficiary designations, trust ownership, and probate apply to each one.
- Visit any of the 11 branch locations across Maryland
- Request a POD beneficiary designation form
- Bring government-issued photo ID
- Provide primary and contingent beneficiary details
- For a trust beneficiary: provide trust name, date, and EIN
- All account owners must sign the form
- The branch representative processes the designation
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- POD beneficiary designation is available on all deposit accounts (checking, savings, money market, and certificates)
- When the last party on a POD account dies, the account is payable to any named and surviving POD payee or trust beneficiary
- When there is more than one surviving beneficiary, funds are owned jointly in equal shares
- IRA beneficiaries are designated at account opening and can be updated at any time by submitting a new form
- Each account must be updated individually; beneficiary designations do not automatically carry across accounts
- All account owners must sign beneficiary designation forms
- Deposit accounts are governed by the Maryland Multiple-Party Accounts law, and a POD or trust designation does not apply to IRAs, which carry a separate beneficiary designation (Membership and Account Agreement, "Joint Accounts — POD/Trust Account Designations", https://www.towerfcu.org/disclaimers)
- A Power of Attorney or a designated Convenience User under the Maryland Multiple-Party Accounts law is VOIDED on the death of the principal, so neither can be used to settle the account (Tower Deceased Member Guide)
- Separate from a beneficiary designation, Tower accepts a Trusted Contact Person Authorization (https://www.towerfcu.org/getmedia/a87997d7-4fca-4f5f-8347-6f7e057c4744/Trusted_Contact_Person_Form.pdf) — a person Tower may contact if it suspects the member has diminished capacity; the trusted contact has no authority over the account
Sources
Data sourced from Tower FCU primary sources (21 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Tower FCU instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Tower FCU primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Member Service Center
Tower Federal Credit Union, P.O. Box 123, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0123
Member Service Center
Tower Federal Credit Union, P.O. Box 123, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0123
Member Case Settlement Department
Tower Federal Credit Union, ATTN: Member Case Settlement Department, 7901 Sandy Spring Rd, Laurel, MD 20707
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