What to do when a United Community account holder dies
Contact United Community's Private Wealth (trust administration and estate settlement) — 5-step process, 8 required documents, and 5-10 business days after all documentation is received
Customer Service
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
Private Wealth (trust administration and estate settlement)
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
Customer Support (deceased account holder notification)
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
After an account holder at United Community dies, accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer to the designated recipients without probate. Solely-owned accounts require the estate's representative to contact United Community's Customer Support (deceased account holder notification) at 1-800-822-2651 with the proper legal authority documents.
United Community provides an online portal for initiating death claims, which can simplify the initial notification and document submission process. Claims can also be started by phone or by mailing the required documents.
Deposit, investment & retirement accounts
To file a claim after an account holder's death, here is what United Community requires:
Filing a claim
- Contact United Community at 1-800-822-2651 (1-800-UCBANK1) or visit a banking center to notify the bank of the account holder's death
- The deposit account agreement obligates you to notify the bank promptly if any person with the right to withdraw from the account dies or is adjudicated incompetent
- Until the bank knows of the death and has had a reasonable opportunity to act on that knowledge, it may keep honoring checks and instructions on the account
- Provide a certified copy of the death certificate
- Under the account agreement, United Community may pay or certify checks drawn on or before the date of death for up to 10 days after the death, unless someone claiming an interest in the account orders a stop payment
- A check the decedent wrote before dying can therefore still clear after the death; do not assume the balance you see on day one is the balance the estate will receive
- If Social Security or another federal agency reclaims a benefit payment that was direct-deposited after the death, the account agreement authorizes United Community to deduct that amount from the account
- The agreement also preserves the bank right of setoff against a due-and-payable debt owed to United Community, which can reduce what is left for the estate or a POD beneficiary
- For accounts with POD beneficiary: beneficiary presents valid government-issued ID and death certificate to claim funds
- For joint accounts with right of survivorship: surviving owner presents death certificate to remove deceased owner
- For accounts without beneficiary or survivorship: executor or administrator presents Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration along with death certificate
- For trust accounts: successor trustee presents death certificate, trust documentation showing successor trustee authority, and valid ID
- For IRA accounts: beneficiary presents death certificate, valid ID, and completes distribution or inherited IRA paperwork
- Submit all required documents at a banking center or by mail
- United Community will review documentation and process the claim
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Valid government-issued ID for the claimant (beneficiary, executor, or successor trustee)
- Account information for the deceased (account number, full name)
- For accounts without beneficiary: Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration from probate court
- For small estates: Small Estate Affidavit (if applicable under state law)
- For trust accounts: trust documentation showing successor trustee authority, successor trustee ID, and any amendments
- For IRA accounts: beneficiary designation verification, distribution election form, and inherited IRA application if applicable
- Written instructions regarding desired distribution method
What to know at this institution
United Community publishes no standalone bereavement or estate-services page and no downloadable death claim form; the process runs through a banking center or the customer service line at 1-800-822-2651 (1-800-UCBANK1). The governing terms are the state-specific deposit account agreement at ucbi.com/terms-and-conditions - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina/Online, and Tennessee each have their own version, and the one that controls is the state where the account was opened. Three clauses matter to an executor: the bank may pay or certify checks drawn on or before the date of death for up to 10 days after the death unless someone claiming an interest orders a stop payment; the bank may deduct a reclaimed federal benefit payment that was direct-deposited to the account; and the bank retains a right of setoff against debts owed to it. On a POD (revocable trust / pay-on-death) account the agreement states a beneficiary cannot withdraw unless every person who created the account has died and the beneficiary is then living, and the owner may change beneficiaries or withdraw the funds at any time before death. Joint accounts with survivorship pass to the survivor by the terms of the agreement. Distribution options may include check, transfer to an existing United Community account, or wire transfer.
Mortgage and home lending
Mortgages and home equity loans are liabilities, not assets. They do not have beneficiaries and cannot be retitled to a trust. When a borrower dies, the loan obligation transfers with the property to whoever inherits it. Under the federal Garn-St. Germain Act, the lender cannot accelerate the loan or call it due when the property transfers to a surviving spouse, child, or the borrower’s revocable trust.
- Contact United Community at 1-800-822-2651 or visit a branch to report the borrower's death
- Provide the deceased borrower's full legal name, Social Security number, and loan number
- Submit a certified copy of the death certificate
- Provide documentation proving your ownership interest in the property (e.g., probated will, court order, deed, trust document, or marriage certificate)
- United Community will review your documentation and confirm your status as a Successor in Interest under CFPB mortgage servicing rules
- Once confirmed, discuss options: continue making payments, apply for loss mitigation, assume the loan, refinance, or pay off the balance
- Continue making monthly mortgage payments during the review process to avoid default
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID for the heir or personal representative
- Documentation proving ownership interest in the property (probated will, court order, deed, trust document, or marriage certificate)
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (if going through probate)
- Loan number and borrower information
What to know at this institution
Under the federal Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act (12 U.S.C. 1701j-3), United Community cannot enforce a due-on-sale clause when the property transfers to a surviving spouse, child, relative upon death, or the borrower's revocable living trust.
Prepare your letter of instruction to United Community
United Community accepts a claimant-drafted letter of instruction. We draft it for you — addressed to United Community's verified claims department, with the documents it requires enclosed.
Build your letter of instructionOpening an account for the estate itself
Checks made out to the estate deposit into an account titled to the estate, opened by the appointed executor or administrator under the estate's EIN.
How to open an estate account at United Community →How long the process takes at United Community: 5-10 business days after all documentation is received. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
Documentation required by United Community includes Certified copy of the death certificate, Valid government-issued ID for the claimant (beneficiary, executor, or successor trustee), and Account information for the deceased (account number, full name), along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, for a window. The United Community deposit account agreement lets the bank keep honoring checks and instructions until it knows of the death and has had a reasonable opportunity to act on that knowledge, and it allows the bank to pay or certify checks drawn on or before the date of death for up to 10 days after the death unless someone claiming an interest in the account orders a stop payment. The agreement also puts the burden on you to notify the bank promptly. Two practical consequences: call 1-800-822-2651 (1-800-UCBANK1) or visit a banking center as soon as you can, and do not treat the day-one balance as the amount the estate will receive - a pre-death check can still clear, a reclaimed federal benefit payment that was direct-deposited after death can be deducted from the account, and the bank keeps a right of setoff against any debt the decedent owed it.
United Community publishes a separate deposit account agreement for each of its six banking states - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina (which also covers online-opened accounts), and Tennessee - at ucbi.com/terms-and-conditions. The version that governs is the one for the state where the account was opened, which is not always where the account holder lived at death. Ownership and survivorship language is where the versions diverge, so an executor settling a United Community account should read the agreement for the opening state rather than assuming the terms from a branch nearby. There is no single national deposit agreement to fall back on.
Under the account agreement, a pay-on-death beneficiary cannot withdraw unless every person who created the account has died and the beneficiary is then living. So on a joint account with a POD beneficiary, the surviving co-owner takes the account first and the POD beneficiary gets nothing until that survivor also dies. Until then the owner keeps full control - the agreement says the owner may change beneficiaries, change account types, or withdraw all of the funds at any time. When the beneficiary is finally entitled to collect, they bring a certified death certificate and a government-issued photo ID to a banking center; POD funds pass outside probate, so no Letters Testamentary are needed.
Under the federal Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act (12 U.S.C. 1701j-3), United Community cannot enforce the due-on-sale clause when the property transfers to a surviving spouse, child, relative upon death, or the borrower's revocable living trust. Heirs confirmed as Successors in Interest under CFPB mortgage servicing rules can continue payments, assume the loan, refinance, or pay off the balance. Contact 1-800-822-2651 to begin the Successor in Interest process.
United Community's Customer Support (deceased account holder notification) can be reached by phone at 1-800-822-2651 for questions throughout the claims process.
Multiple United Community accounts may mean multiple claims. Some account types can be processed together, but others require their own documentation. Check with the Customer Support (deceased account holder notification) to confirm what applies.
Sources
Data sourced from United Community primary sources (20 pages reviewed). How we research.
Customer Service
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
Private Wealth (trust administration and estate settlement)
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
Customer Support (deceased account holder notification)
United Community Bank, 200 East Camperdown Way, Greenville, SC 29601
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your United Community accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
Is this your situation?
Get a complete guide for your specific circumstances.
More tools for handling this estate
Calculators and checklists for executors and trustees.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Estimate attorney fees, executor fees, court costs, and timeline for probating an estate in your state. See if the estate qualifies for simplified probate procedures.
How Much Can an Executor Charge?
Calculate how much an executor (personal representative) can charge for administering an estate. See if your state has statutory fees or uses reasonable compensation.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Find out who inherits your estate and how much they get if you die without a will. Based on your state's intestate succession laws.
What's Fair Trustee Compensation?
Find out what's fair compensation for serving as trustee. Compare family, professional, and corporate trustee rates based on your situation.
How Much Are Estate & Inheritance Taxes?
Calculate federal estate tax, state estate tax (12 states + DC), and inheritance tax (5 states) for an estate or trust.
How Many Death Certificates Do I Need?
Calculate how many certified death certificates you need based on the assets and accounts you need to close. See state-specific ordering information.
