Follow
Share

My 75 year old dad has no will or POA. im the one who does everything for him I need proof for the bank so they will add me to his account. What do I need? And where do I get it?

Is your father still competent? If so, have him go with you to the bank and sign the paperwork. The bank staff may need to talk with him alone to verify that you are not coercing or taking advantage of him.

And if he is still competent, insist that he go to an attorney to assign you his POA.

If he is not competent, then you'll need to talk with the bank about what they require. You may need to go to court to get conservatorship and/or guardianship.

You may know this but in case you don't, the POA expires upon death. Then the will takes over and the Executor assigned in the will has the authority and responsibility for making decision, as dictated by the will. Often the POA and the Executor are the same person, but not always -- those would be up to your dad to assign. If there is no will, then his state law will dictate how his asset are distributed, which may or may not be what he wanted.
(1)
Report

Banks each have individual policies regarding this BUT you most likely will absolutely need to be his FPoA and/or bring him in to the bank in person so that he can approve you being made joint on his account. Banks are very sensitive to elder financial abuse, so they are very protective of their clients, especially coercion from family members.

If he won't agree to this then other solutions are conservatorship or guardianship.

The Will is another issue and only comes into play after he passes. If he dies without a Will, this is called Intestate. His "estate" will go into probate and his next of kin will be allowed to inherit it as per the courts. This also can vary by state.
(0)
Report

The answer is very specific to your bank. Banks generally won't do this without a POA, so if your bank is offering to do it "with proof" you'll need to ask them exactly what they require.

Regarding a will, once he's passed the estate will go through probate if there are enough assets and the estate will be distributed to next of kin however the generic way your county or state does it.
(0)
Report

Start a Discussion
Subscribe to
Our Newsletter