Joint Accounts & Death: Safe Deposit Practices vs. Checking Account Practices
by John Burnett and Dave McGuinn, BOL Gurus
Question: When a safe deposit box is jointly owned, the common practice is to seal the box upon the death of one lessee until a release from the state is received. However, when one owner of a joint checking account dies, the joint owner is assumed to own the balance in the account. Why are the two relationships be treated differently?
Answer by John Burnett: BIO AND CONTACT INFO To oversimplify the answer, let's just say that state law regarding safe deposit boxes doesn't necessarily track laws on deposit accounts. In fact, in some states the safe deposit laws aren't even part of the banking statutes.
Answer by Dave McGuinn: BIO AND CONTACT INFO
State regulations regarding access into a jointly rented box after the death of a renter will be different in every state.
Over the past five years most states have amended their safe deposit laws to not require financial institutions to freeze boxes, inventory box contents, report to the state or require legal documents from the surviving renter to obtain access or remove box contents.
Check you current state safe deposit regulation. If this regulation has been amended, you may be doing this procedure now because; "We've always done it this way".
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