Estate planning options at TruWest CU
Estate planning at TruWest CU means getting each account set up so it transfers automatically when you die—either through a POD beneficiary or trust ownership. Because TruWest CU is a membership-based institution, trust retitling must maintain the membership eligibility requirement. Without one of these in place, accounts may require probate before your family can access the funds.
TruWest CU has 19 product types, and the estate transfer rules differ across them. Some support Payable on Death (POD) designations, some can be retitled into a trust, and others pass through the estate if nothing is set up. Each is covered below.
No beneficiary form at TruWest CU
Required Documents
- Signed Account Change form or member services request (to change a designation on an existing account, where TruWest requires it). Or another document TruWest accepts (Membership & Account Agreement, Section 30)
Required Documents
- Account change document (where TruWest requires one). Such as a signed Account Change form or member services request (Membership & Account Agreement, Section 30)
Required Documents
- Signed Account Change form or member services request (to change a designation on an existing account, where TruWest requires it). Or another document TruWest accepts (Membership & Account Agreement, Section 30)
What TruWest CU says about beneficiaries and trusts
Each section is TruWest CU's own statement, with the document it comes from numbered under Sources.
Which accounts take a beneficiary4
- Payable-on-death account
A POD or revocable trust account designation makes an individual or joint account payable to the owners during their lifetimes and, when the last owner dies, to any named and surviving POD or trust beneficiary.1
- IRA
An IRA takes TruWest's separate IRA beneficiary designation. The POD rules in Section 5 of the agreement do not apply to IRAs.1
- Trust account
The POD rules in Section 5 do not apply to an account held on behalf of or in the name of a trust created by a trust agreement.1
- Business account
No POD designation applies to an account held in the name of a business, organization or association.1
How many beneficiaries, and how shares are split
- All accounts
Two or more surviving beneficiaries own the funds jointly in equal shares without rights of survivorship, unless state law provides for different ownership or TruWest has permitted and documented it.1
What a designation takes to be effective
- All accounts
TruWest reserves the right to require the written consent of all owners for any change to a joint account.1
What TruWest CU's agreement says about beneficiaries1
- Who can see the designation
TruWest is not obligated to notify a POD beneficiary that the account exists or that the beneficiary's interest has vested, except as the law requires.1
Which accounts a trust can hold1
- Trust account
Section 2 of the Membership & Account Agreement allows an individual account to be owned by one member qualified for credit union membership, including a trust.1
What TruWest CU says about trust accounts3
- Whether a new account is opened
TruWest may require an account to be closed and a new account opened when there is a change in owners, so retitling may mean a new account in the trust's name (Section 31).1
- The institution's right to refuse a designation or an account title
TruWest may facilitate certain trust arrangements, and it may refuse instructions it believes could expose it to claims (Section 30).1
- Indemnity the owner or a trustee gives
For a trust arrangement, TruWest may require an indemnity, a bond or other protection (Section 30).1
Not in TruWest CU's published guidance3
- A beneficiary designation form
- A POD designation page or channel list
- A trust account page, document list or timeline
Sources1
Sources
Data sourced from TruWest CU primary sources (20 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these TruWest CU instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against TruWest CU primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
TruWest CU estate support
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