You may not see the point of filling out a beneficiary designation form with your financial institution for your bank account(s) if you already made these instructions clear in your Last Will and Testament document. However, what you may not realize is that there may be great benefits in taking this extra step toward asset protection. Without further introduction, please follow along to find out whether you should designate a beneficiary to your bank account and how a proficient Broward County estate administration lawyer at The Probate Lawyers can help you go through this procedure correctly.
Should I add a beneficiary to my bank account?
Simply put, if you formally make beneficiary designations for your bank account(s), they may not have to endure the Florida probate process. This means that these funds may pass directly to your intended loved ones without the headache and delay that comes with court intervention and in the exact way you wished for. All the more, these are fewer assets to worry about when it comes to conflicts and disputes amongst your loved ones during these estate administration proceedings.
It is worth mentioning that if you already mentioned beneficiaries for these accounts in your Last Will and Testament document, you may still proceed with your financial institution’s beneficiary designation form. After all, when the time comes, this designation may override whatever was written in your will.
Lastly, we may advise you to leave funds for your minor children in a trust rather than in your bank account(s). This is because they may be protected and managed by a trusted adult (i.e., your designated trustee) until they reach an age of maturity. Also, if your child has a disability, you should know that making them the beneficiary of your bank account(s) may have negative implications on their government-funded disability benefits. Again, we recommend an alternative plan here.
Should I add contingent beneficiaries to these accounts?
Even after you think to name your loved one as the beneficiary of your bank account(s), they may be unable or unwilling to inherit these funds. For one, they may sadly pass away before you. Or, they may be unable to be identified and located at the time of your passing. They may even refuse to accept these funds outright due to its tax implications or other personal reasonings.
In any event, you may still want these funds to go into good hands. This is why we may encourage you to designate a contingent beneficiary for these bank account(s). These individuals may simply serve as your secondary or backup beneficiaries. But in the first place, we ask that you deeply reflect on who will likely serve best as your primary beneficiary. What’s more, we would like to remind you about your capability to switch these beneficiary designations around or altogether should life circumstances call for it.
Before entering these proceedings, you should have already hired a talented Broward County estate lawyer to represent you. So, if you have not done so already, please contact The Probate Lawyers today.
