Attorney Thomas B. Burton discusses access to safety deposit boxes and how you can ensure that your Trustee or Personal Representative has access to your safety deposit box after you die.
Transcript of Video: How Do I Access Someone’s Safety Deposit Box After They Die?
Today's question how do I access the
safety deposit box of someone after
they've died so I get this question a
lot and I answer questions on
various online forums and this just came
across my desk the other day the
parent had died and the child was trying
to gain access to the safety deposit
box but they weren't sure their name was
on the access form to the box but they
needed the Will because they were named
as personal representative (the Executor) of
the Estate in the Will but they needed
to find the original
Will in order to open the probate so it
becomes a chicken-and-egg problem if you
have a safety deposit box and you name
your child or a friend as the Personal
Representative I recommend giving them
access to the box at the bank
meaning you fill out the form saying
they can access the box now or or making
it effective that they can access it
after your death if you don't give them
access to the box they may have to go to
court just to get an order to open the
box to look for the Will so you want to
avoid that and if you have a safe at home
you can keep the Will there and tell
your Personal Representative how to
access it but if you want to use a
safety deposit box make sure the person
name is the Representative in your will
or the Trustee in your Trust has access
to the box so after your death they can
go get the Will to file with
the court or the Trust document to
follow what it says so the key takeaway
with the safety deposit box is it's
great for keeping your Will safe from
fire but make sure that if you're gone
someone has access so they can get you
important documents and follow your
wishes Great question and thanks for
asking!
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Transcript and captions provided for ease of access for the hearing impaired.
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