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01-12-2021, 03:29 PM
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#1
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1,154
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Info for heirs
I'm in the process of putting together some paperwork for my heirs so they can find the money. Phone numbers of the institutions have been provided. I guess for them to make claim they would need death certificate(s). I'm wondering if they would also need to give account numbers. Of course I would be putting this file somwhere safe.
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01-12-2021, 04:21 PM
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#2
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Big Sky Country, Montana
Posts: 288
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ripper1
I'm in the process of putting together some paperwork for my heirs so they can find the money. Phone numbers of the institutions have been provided. I guess for them to make claim they would need death certificate(s). I'm wondering if they would also need to give account numbers. Of course I would be putting this file somwhere safe.
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A lot of password vault companies have a feature whereby you can guide heirs in with a special number or password so they can gain access to your accounts and passwords after death. The one I use also provides secure storage for documents, instructions, wills, and such.
It makes things so much easier for the executor/s if they can log in like you do.
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01-12-2021, 04:32 PM
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#3
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: solomons
Posts: 851
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01-12-2021, 04:36 PM
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#4
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 432
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Fidsafe, offered by Fidelity. It is free
https://www.fidsafe.com/
Quote:
Have copies of the right documents in the right place, all the time. FidSafe® is the secure online solution that ensures the critical files you need are available to you and your family whenever and wherever you need them, even after you’re gone. Get started, it's quick, easy and free!
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01-12-2021, 06:32 PM
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#5
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Victoria
Posts: 106
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Do these include someone to clear your browser history?
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01-13-2021, 01:18 PM
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#6
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,639
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Go-NoGo
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Have you used this? I saw it on FIDO website, but couldn't figure out if it was any better than the book I've made up. How do heirs know to go to the FidSafe website?
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01-13-2021, 01:24 PM
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#7
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2013
Location: ATL --> Flyover Country
Posts: 6,649
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PatrickA5
Have you used this? I saw it on FIDO website, but couldn't figure out if it was any better than the book I've made up. How do heirs know to go to the FidSafe website?
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The FAQ page answers your questions and explains it all pretty well. Looks like a pretty good option, IMHO.
__________________
FIRE'd in 2014 @ 40 Years Old
Professional Retiree
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01-13-2021, 01:29 PM
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#8
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 432
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PatrickA5
Have you used this? I saw it on FIDO website, but couldn't figure out if it was any better than the book I've made up. How do heirs know to go to the FidSafe website?
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I have not used it yet, but am planning on doing it in the future. The book with all your key information is a good way to go, you could think of the Fidsafe as a backup in the event the book gets misplaced or lost after the "event"
From the FAQ on Fidsafe :
Quote:
What is Sharing After Death?
Sharing After Death is a service offered by FidSafe that facilitates your files and notes being shared with a designated person after your death.
How does Sharing After Death work?
To enroll, click on settings in the upper right, then click on “Sign Up” in the Sharing After Death section. You will be asked to provide the last 4 digits of your SSN and select a designee (one of your existing FidSafe contacts). Upon notification of your death, FidSafe verifies your death certificate and shares your FidSafe files and notes in the designee’s FidSafe account. You can change the designee or unsubscribe from Sharing After Death at any time after signing up.
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01-13-2021, 01:55 PM
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#9
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NC Triangle
Posts: 5,807
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Info for heirs
Thanks for this post. I’d never heard of the service (FidSafe). I’ll be very interested in what people think.
[ADDED] I’m especially curious about how long it’s expected to last because, of course, I’m not going to die.
__________________
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01-13-2021, 02:56 PM
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#10
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 609
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On my death bed, I’ll be whispering to my heirs, “Please clear the browser and remember me as the person you thought I was.”
__________________
Saved 8 figures by my mid-40's as a professional bubble-spotter. Beware...the Fed creates bubble after bubble after bubble.
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01-13-2021, 03:03 PM
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#11
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Santa Paula
Posts: 4,076
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ripper1
I'm in the process of putting together some paperwork for my heirs so they can find the money. Phone numbers of the institutions have been provided. I guess for them to make claim they would need death certificate(s). I'm wondering if they would also need to give account numbers. Of course I would be putting this file somwhere safe.
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I have a sheet in our Estate Planning binder with a listing of every account, including the company name, phone number, and account number.
__________________
Retired Jan 2009 Have not looked back.
AA 60/35/5 considering SS and pensions a SP annuity
WR 2% with 2SS & 2 Pensions
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01-13-2021, 03:09 PM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,361
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Nah, that is what incognito mode is for!
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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01-13-2021, 03:21 PM
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#13
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 1,396
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I've often heard people say that they have given their username and passwords to their accounts to their loved ones in case the pass away, but I wonder how useful that is?
First of all, it is illegal for someone to pretend to be you and use your account credentials to take any action as you after you are dead. And yes that applies to your beneficiaries, and yes that applies to someone with a durable power of attorney because the power of attorney dies when you die.
Second, as soon as your account providers find out that you are dead they are going to freeze your account so those account credentials won't be any good anymore.
I suppose your heirs could use the account credentials to log in and see the account information without taking any action before they notify the account holders (and assuming the account provider does not find out that you are dead from another source) and that may be beneficial, but you could accomplish the same thing simply by giving your heirs the contact information for the account provider and making sure they know your SSN and birthday and have a general idea of what accounts are with which provider. I think that's all they need anyway.
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01-13-2021, 03:32 PM
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#14
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 72
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to OP:
I've been going through this process for DM's estate for several months.
1. Heirs need a death certificate FIRST before they can do anything. The mortuary handled obtaining the DC and notifying Social Security routinely. It took longer than usual because of COVID restrictions at the county level.
2. Account numbers are enormously helpful to the heirs. Please list them with each account. Statements are also helpful. Make sure all accounts that need beneficiaries have them. My mom left a bit of a mess, but she had all her accounts as either POD or TOD, and that was so helpful.
It took us a while to find all the documents we needed, but we eventually did. The only thing we couldn't find was one stock certificate, so that is being sorted out.
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01-13-2021, 03:39 PM
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#15
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Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Flyover country
Posts: 25,346
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NeverBored
1. Heirs need a death certificate FIRST before they can do anything.
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And believe me, you want to ask for more of them than you think you'll need. Small cost, but well worth it.
__________________
I thought growing old would take longer.
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01-13-2021, 03:39 PM
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#16
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,361
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Nolo doesn't seem to see it as much of a problem.
Quote:
In this digital age, if you die or become incapacitated, your executor and loved ones will need access to your online accounts. If someone you trust doesn't know your passwords or usernames, who will take care of your bank accounts, automatic payment plans, investment information, electronic mortgage statements, and credit card bills? Who will monitor your email? Your Facebook page?
If your spouse, or whomever you want to have access to these accounts, can't get in, it could take a court order just to find out something as simple as how much money is in your checking account. (The only exception is Oklahoma, which has a law giving the executor the right to control any email or social networking accounts of the deceased person.) Going to court is expensive and time consuming; fortunately, it's also completely avoidable. You just need a way to arrange for the information to get to someone you trust if it's ever needed. Read on to learn how....
The best plan is probably the simplest. Just make a list of your user names, passwords, PINs, and related accounts, and then make sure the right person knows how to get access to it. The hard parts are remembering all the passwords you've accumulated, and keeping the list up to date.
Be sure to include information on how to access:
- computers
- Internet service providers or Web hosting services
- email accounts (email providers all have their own rules about access after a death; some allow next of kin access, some won't give access to anyone)
- blogs
- photo storage sites
- social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn
- online subscriptions (for example, magazine subscriptions that renew automatically or subscriptions to sports websites)
- financial sites (banks and brokerages) where you have money saved or invested
- mortgage providers
- college savings and retirement plans
- companies (such as banks or utilities) where you have set up automatic bill-paying
- software applications (for example, tax return or legal document preparation programs or websites), and
- cell phones. ...
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Now that said, if I were a named executor I would tread lightly and try to avoid doing much in any decedent's accounts until formally appointed executor by the probate court if the will is subject to probate (sme smaller wills might not be). But I would be very comfortable making sure that bills got paid, etc.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclope...tor-35013.html
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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01-13-2021, 03:46 PM
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#17
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: vinton
Posts: 128
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I'm helping my mother go through this right now. My father passed last month and even though they had a living trust, we have to remove my father's name and SS# from all the accounts. Luckily for us, he left an "in case I die" checklist with account #''s, phone numbers, and addresses. You would think with all the technology available today it would be simple, it is not.
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01-13-2021, 03:47 PM
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#18
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Administrator
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 40,705
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pb4uski
Nolo doesn't seem to see it as much of a problem.
Now that said, if I were a named executor I would tread lightly and try to avoid doing much in any decedent's accounts until formally appointed executor by the probate court if the will is subject to probate (sme smaller wills might not be). But I would be very comfortable making sure that bills got paid, etc.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclope...tor-35013.html
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I would just add that in addition to accounts, usernames and passwords, the executor will probably need the cell phone of the deceased, with access, to deal with 2 factor authentication.
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01-13-2021, 04:08 PM
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#19
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Santa Paula
Posts: 4,076
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Quote:
Originally Posted by braumeister
And believe me, you want to ask for more of them than you think you'll need. Small cost, but well worth it.
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Absolutely! It costs more to request them later.
__________________
Retired Jan 2009 Have not looked back.
AA 60/35/5 considering SS and pensions a SP annuity
WR 2% with 2SS & 2 Pensions
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01-13-2021, 04:10 PM
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#20
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Portland
Posts: 1,713
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelB
I would just add that in addition to accounts, usernames and passwords, the executor will probably need the cell phone of the deceased, with access, to deal with 2 factor authentication.
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The one thing I missed on my wife's passing was her Apple log in. So I am going to have to destroy her 2 i phones. Apple isn't super friendly on getting access. I'll probably try one more time then give up
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