What happens to a bank account when someone dies in Florida
How a Florida bank account passes at death by account type: joint with survivorship, payable on death, sole name, convenience, trust and safe-deposit box. Each rule is tied to its statute, with the steps to claim the money.
The title on the account decides who gets the money. A joint account with survivorship passes to the surviving owner, and a pay-on-death account passes to the named beneficiary, both outside probate (§ 655.79(1), Fla. Stat. (2026); § 655.82(3)). An account in the decedent's name alone with no beneficiary is a probate asset that the personal representative collects (§ 733.607(1)).
Access by account type
Table 1 lists who is entitled to the money at death for each way an account can be titled, and the paper the statute or the account agreement calls for.
| Account type | Who is entitled at death | What the bank needs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joint account, two or more names | The surviving owner or owners, unless the contract, agreement or signature card says otherwise. An account in the names of a husband and wife is a tenancy by the entirety unless specified in writing. | The bank's own forms. The statute vests title in the survivor. | § 655.79(1) |
| Pay-on-death (POD) account, one owner | The named beneficiaries, in equal shares if more than one survives. | Proof of death showing the beneficiary survived all parties to the account. | § 655.82(3)(b); § 655.82(6)(b) |
| Joint account with a POD designation | The surviving party first. Beneficiaries take after the last party dies. | Proof of death. | § 655.82(3)(a)-(b) |
| Account held as tenants in common | No right of survivorship. A POD designation on such an account is ineffective. | Letters of administration or another probate route for the decedent's share. | § 655.82(4) |
| Convenience account (one owner, other people named as agents) | The owner alone. The agents have no ownership. | Written notice and proof of the personal representative's appointment, or a court order or letter under the small-estate sections. | § 655.80(2)-(3) |
| Sole name, no beneficiary | The probate estate. | Certified letters of administration, an order of summary administration, or a small-estate route in Table 2. | § 733.607(1); § 731.201(24) |
| Account titled to a revocable trust | The successor trustee under the trust. | A certification of trust, which the trustee may give instead of the trust instrument. | § 736.1017 |
| Account run by an agent under a power of attorney | A power of attorney ends when the principal dies. The money follows the account title. | The title documents above. The agent's authority is over. | § 709.2109(1)(a) |
Sources: the sections in the last column, Fla. Stat. (2026). The bank's deposit agreement can add requirements. Where the statute starts with “unless otherwise expressly provided” in the contract, the signature card controls.
Find out how it is titled
The signature card, the latest statement and online banking show the title. A bank may not release deposit-account records on request: § 655.059(2)(b) keeps them confidential except on the express authorization of the account holder, with listed exceptions. One exception lets a bank disclose that a decedent's individual account exists, and its amount, to a petitioner under § 735.203 or § 734.1025 and to an affiant under § 735.301 or § 735.304. A family member using the § 735.303 affidavit can also get that information.
Once the personal representative has letters, the representative acts for the estate (§ 733.601) and takes possession or control of the decedent's property (§ 733.607(1)).
Joint accounts
Unless the contract, agreement or signature card says otherwise, a deposit account in two or more names may be paid to or on the order of any of the owners (§ 655.78(1)). At the death of one owner, all rights in the account vest in the surviving owner or owners, less the bank's proper setoffs and charges (§ 655.79(1)).
- Rebutting survivorship. The presumption “may be overcome only by proof of fraud or undue influence or clear and convincing proof of a contrary intent” (§ 655.79(2)).
- Donative intent. The survivor takes without proof of donative intent, delivery or control by anyone (§ 655.79(2)).
- Spouses. A husband-and-wife account is a tenancy by the entirety unless specified in writing (§ 655.79(1)).
Pay-on-death accounts
A beneficiary has no right to the money while any party to the account is alive (§ 655.82(2)).
- One beneficiary. On the death of the sole party or the last survivor, the sums on deposit belong to the surviving beneficiary (§ 655.82(3)(b)).
- Several beneficiaries. Survivors take equal and undivided shares. There is no right of survivorship if a beneficiary later dies, unless a depository agreement written between December 31, 1994 and July 1, 2001 provided otherwise (§ 655.82(3)(b)).
- No surviving beneficiary. The money belongs to the estate of the last surviving party (§ 655.82(3)(b)).
- What the bank pays on. The bank may pay the beneficiaries when proof of death shows they survived all parties, and payment discharges the bank from claims for the amount paid (§ 655.82(6)(b), (7)).
- Checks written before death. The survivor's or estate's ownership is subject to payment requests a party made before death, whether the bank paid them before or after death (§ 655.82(5)).
Sole-name accounts
The personal representative's duties and powers start on appointment. The powers relate back to acts before appointment that benefit the estate, and the representative may ratify and accept acts on behalf of the estate done by others when the acts would have been proper for a personal representative (§ 733.601). “Letters” means the court's grant of authority, and all letters are designated “letters of administration” (§ 731.201(24)). A bank dealing with a personal representative asks for a certified copy. Table 2 lists the routes for collecting a sole-name account.
| Route | Condition | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Formal administration | Any estate. The personal representative collects the account with letters. | § 733.607(1) |
| Summary administration | The estate subject to administration in Florida, less property exempt from creditors, does not exceed $150,000, or the decedent has been dead more than 2 years. In a testate estate, the will must not direct administration as required by ch. 733. The order of summary administration may allow immediate distribution. | § 735.201; § 735.206(3) |
| Bank affidavit by a family member | Qualified accounts (sole name, no POD or survivor designation) at that bank total no more than $2,000. The bank may not pay earlier than 6 months after death. The family member is the spouse, or an adult child if no spouse, or an adult descendant if no spouse and no adult child, or a parent if none of those. Requires a certified death certificate and a sworn affidavit. No personal representative may be appointed and no probate begun. | § 735.303(1)-(3) |
| Disposition without administration | Only exempt property plus nonexempt personal property no greater than preferred funeral expenses and medical and hospital expenses of the last 60 days of the last illness. Informal application to the court, which may authorize payment by letter under its seal. | § 735.301 |
| Intestate small estate | Decedent died intestate, has been dead more than 1 year, no administration pending, and nonexempt personal property does not exceed $20,000 plus preferred funeral and last-illness expenses. An heir applies by affidavit served on other heirs and known creditors. | § 735.304 |
| Federal income tax refund | An overpayment of $5,000 or less may be refunded to the surviving spouse, or to a designated child if there is no spouse, on a verified application stating no administration has begun. | § 735.302 |
Sources: Fla. Stat. (2026). The thresholds in §§ 735.201, 735.302, 735.303 and 735.304 were raised by ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla., sections 7 through 10, effective July 1, 2026.
Affidavit liability. A family member who withdraws funds under § 735.303 is personally liable to the decedent's creditors and to others rightfully entitled to the funds, to the extent the amount paid exceeds the family member's proper share (§ 735.303(6)). A person who knowingly makes a false statement in the affidavit commits theft (§ 735.303(8)).
Who decides which route. The probate path guide and the disposition without administration guide cover eligibility in full.
After letters issue
- Tax ID. The personal representative applies for an employer identification number (EIN) for the estate (IRS Publication 559).
- Fiduciary duty. The personal representative is a fiduciary held to the standards of a trustee (§ 733.602(1)) and is liable to interested persons for loss from a breach of that duty, with costs and attorney fees awarded in actions for breach (§ 733.609(1)).
- Funeral bills. Reasonable funeral, interment and grave marker expenses are a Class 2 obligation up to an aggregate of $6,000, whether paid by a guardian, the personal representative or any other person (§ 733.707(1)(b)). A relative who pays from personal funds keeps the receipts for reimbursement.
- Order of payment. Costs and compensation of administration are Class 1 and are paid before funeral expenses (§ 733.707(1)(a)).
- Certified copies. Certified death certificates come from the Florida Department of Health.
Trust-owned accounts
When the account is titled to a revocable trust, the successor trustee acts under the trust. The trustee may give the bank a certification of trust in place of the trust instrument. It states that the trust exists and its date, the settlor, the acting trustee, the trustee's powers, whether the trust is revocable and how title is held, and it need not state the dispositive terms (§ 736.1017(1), (4)). A bank that relies on it in good faith without knowledge that it is wrong is not liable (§ 736.1017(6)).
The trustee gives qualified beneficiaries notice of the trust within 60 days after learning it became irrevocable (§ 736.0813(1)(b)) and files a notice of trust with the court on the settlor's death (§ 736.05055). The trust is liable for the settlor's estate expenses and obligations to the extent the probate estate cannot pay them (§ 733.707(3)). A trust is created by transferring property to the trustee (§ 736.0401(1)), so an account still in the decedent's own name is a sole-name account (Table 2). See the trust administration guide.
Debit cards, agents and signers
A power of attorney terminates when the principal dies, and an agent's authority under it ends with it (§ 709.2109(1)(a)). A bank's authority to pay items continues until the bank knows of the death and has a reasonable opportunity to act, and for 10 days after the date of death the bank may pay checks drawn on or before that date unless a person claiming an interest in the account orders payment stopped (§ 674.405). That section addresses the bank's authority. It gives nobody a right to the money.
On a convenience account, the agency created by the account is not affected by the principal's death except as § 655.80 provides, and the rights in the account belong to the principal only. The balance is payable to the principal's personal representative or to a person named in a court order or letter under the small-estate sections (§ 655.80).
A debit card is a way to move money out of the account. The sole-name account belongs to the estate, and the right to possess it belongs to the personal representative (§ 733.607(1)).
Mistakes the statutes address
- Taking money from a sole-name account before letters. The funds are estate property. Collection belongs to the personal representative (§ 733.607(1)), who answers to interested persons for breaches of fiduciary duty (§ 733.609).
- Mixing estate and personal money. The personal representative holds the estate to trustee standards (§ 733.602(1)).
- Depositing the decedent's checks into a personal account. Money payable to the decedent is estate property under the same possession rule (§ 733.607(1)).
- Signing a false small-estate affidavit. Knowingly false statements in a § 735.303 affidavit are theft (§ 735.303(8)).
- Spending Social Security deposits for months after death. See the Social Security section below.
- Treating a joint or POD account as estate property. Those accounts pass by title (§ 655.79; § 655.82), so the title is read before any account is folded into the estate.
Social Security and direct deposits
Old-age insurance benefits end with the month before the month of death (42 U.S.C. § 402(a)). A payment that covers the month of death or any later month is not payable. The Social Security Administration states that funeral homes generally tell it when someone dies, and that if a funeral home isn't involved or doesn't report the death, you should call 1-800-772-1213 and give the person's name, Social Security number, date of birth and date of death (SSA, What to do when someone dies, accessed October 17, 2026).
A federal income tax refund owed to a decedent can reach a surviving spouse or designated child without a probate case in the small cases covered by § 735.302 (Table 2).
Safe-deposit boxes
These sections govern a box after the lessee dies. Ch. 2026-57, effective July 1, 2026, amended § 655.933 and § 655.936.
| Who | What the lessor must or may do | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Personal representative with letters | The lessor must allow access on a copy of the letters, must deliver property held in safekeeping on a certified copy of the letters of authority, must grant access to a box in the decedent's name and let the representative remove contents, and must let the representative or the representative's attorney pay accumulated charges and end the lease. | § 655.933(1); § 655.936(1) |
| Spouse, parent, adult descendant, or a person named as personal representative in a copy of a purported will | On satisfactory proof of death, and absent a court order, the lessor lets that person open the box in the presence of an officer of the lessor. At request, the lessor removes and delivers only a purported will (to the probate court), a burial plot deed or burial instructions (to the requester), and a life insurance policy (to the named beneficiary), and keeps a copy and a memorandum of delivery in the box. | § 655.935 |
| Initial opening by the representative | Conducted in the presence of any two of: a bank employee, the personal representative, the representative's attorney of record. Each present signs an inventory under penalties of perjury, and the representative files the inventory with the box entry record from 6 months before death within 10 days after opening. | § 733.6065(1) |
| Surviving co-lessee | Access is separate from the rights of others, and is not subject to the search procedure or the initial-opening requirement. A written inventory may be made in the presence of one other person: another person granted access, a bank employee, or a Florida-licensed attorney, each signing under penalty of perjury. | § 655.937(1), (4)-(5) |
Sources: Fla. Stat. (2026), as amended by ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla., sections 1, 2 and 11.
Finding accounts
- Mail and statements. Recent statements and year-end interest forms show the banks. Interest income is reported on Form 1099-INT, and the payers of interest appear on Schedule B of Form 1040.
- Unclaimed property. Property is presumed abandoned after a dormancy period, generally 5 years from when it becomes payable (§ 717.102(1)). The Florida Department of Financial Services runs Claim Your Cash FL, where a search by the decedent's name shows listed accounts.
- Safe-deposit boxes. See Table 3.
FDIC coverage after a death
The death of a deposit owner does not change the insurance coverage of the deposit for 6 months, unless the account is restructured. After 6 months, coverage follows actual ownership (12 C.F.R. § 330.3(j)).
Sources
Last checked: October 17, 2026. Statutes are cited to the 2026 Florida Statutes on the Florida Senate site.
- § 655.78, § 655.79, § 655.80 and § 655.82, Fla. Stat. (2026). Multiple-party, convenience and pay-on-death accounts.
- § 655.059, Fla. Stat. (2026). Access to books and records; confidentiality.
- § 655.933, § 655.935, § 655.936 and § 655.937, Fla. Stat. (2026). Safe-deposit boxes. § 733.6065. Opening a safe-deposit box.
- § 674.405, Fla. Stat. (2026). Death or incompetence of customer.
- § 709.2109, Fla. Stat. (2026). Termination of power of attorney.
- § 731.201, § 733.601, § 733.602, § 733.607, § 733.609 and § 733.707, Fla. Stat. (2026). Definitions; duties and powers of the personal representative; order of payment.
- § 735.201, § 735.206, § 735.301, § 735.302, § 735.303 and § 735.304, Fla. Stat. (2026). Summary administration and disposition without administration. § 735.203 and § 734.1025.
- § 736.0401, § 736.0813, § 736.05055 and § 736.1017, Fla. Stat. (2026). Creating a trust; trustee notice; certification of trust.
- § 717.102, Fla. Stat. (2026). Property presumed abandoned.
- Ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla. (CS/HB 1337), effective July 1, 2026.
- 42 U.S.C. § 402(a), old-age insurance benefits. SSA, What to do when someone dies, accessed October 17, 2026.
- 12 C.F.R. § 330.3(j), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, continuation of coverage after death.
- IRS Publication 559 (2025), Survivors, Executors, and Administrators, IRS page last reviewed or updated April 30, 2026.
- Florida Department of Health, Death Certificates, accessed October 17, 2026. Claim Your Cash FL, accessed October 17, 2026.
What people ask us about this.
Does a joint bank account go through probate in Florida?
Does a pay-on-death account go through probate in Florida?
How do I get money from my parent's bank account if the account was in their name alone?
Can I use my deceased parent's debit card to pay bills?
Will the bank tell me the balance before probate opens?
How do I open my parent's safe-deposit box after they die in Florida?
Do I have to give back a Social Security payment that arrives after a death?
How do I find out whether my relative had accounts I do not know about?
Does the FDIC still insure the account after the owner dies?
Related guides
Intake reopens late October 2026. The guides stay free.
Rachel is not accepting new clients until late October 2026. Leave your details and we'll call when intake reopens. If your matter can't wait, The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service — 800-342-8011 — refers you to another Florida attorney taking cases now.