To complete the Huntington Bank payable on death form, visit any Huntington branch, ask a representative for the POD designation form, and sign it in the representative’s presence with every account owner present. You will list each beneficiary’s full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth, and current address, and the bank will link the designation to your account on the spot. There is no fee, and no download exists — the form is only issued at a branch.
Which Accounts You Can Add a Beneficiary To
Huntington allows POD designations on personal checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. Adding a beneficiary does not change the account’s interest rate, fees, or your day-to-day access. While you are alive, your beneficiaries have no rights to the money; you can spend, withdraw, or close the account without asking anyone.
Joint accounts with rights of survivorship work a little differently. When one co-owner dies, the surviving owner becomes the sole owner. The POD designation only pays out after the last surviving owner dies. Any joint owner can change the POD beneficiaries at any time, including after another joint owner has died.
Business accounts held by a corporation, LLC, or partnership generally cannot use a standard POD form. Those entities distribute assets under their operating agreement, corporate resolution, or partnership documents.
Getting the Form
The form is only available in person. Huntington does not publish it online, and you cannot print it in advance. Under Huntington’s deposit agreement, all account owners must sign the form the bank provides, so on a joint account every listed owner needs to be there (or to sign the same physical form). Bring a valid government-issued photo ID; the representative uses it to verify your identity before processing the designation.
What the Form Asks For
For each beneficiary, the form collects:
- Full legal name, exactly as it appears on the beneficiary’s government-issued ID. A missing middle name or a nickname can slow down the payout later.
- Social Security number, which the bank uses for tax reporting when funds are distributed.
- Date of birth and current address, so the bank can locate and verify the beneficiary when a claim is made.
Gather this information before you go to the branch. Asking a beneficiary for their SSN is easier than a second trip.
Choosing How the Money Is Split
By default, Huntington splits the account equally among all living beneficiaries at the time of your death. If equal shares are what you want, you do not need to write anything extra. If you want unequal shares, specify the percentages on the form and make sure they add up to exactly 100 percent. Sixty and forty is fine; sixty and thirty-five is not.
Indiana Residents and Lineal Descendants
If you live in Indiana or opened your account there, one rule in Huntington’s agreement is worth knowing before you sign. If a beneficiary who is your lineal descendant (a child, grandchild, or great-grandchild) dies before you do, that person’s share passes to their own descendants rather than being redistributed to your other named beneficiaries. To override the rule for a particular beneficiary, write “No LDPS” next to that person’s name on the form. The rule only applies to lineal descendants; if you name a spouse, sibling, or friend and they die first, their share simply goes to the remaining beneficiaries.
Signing, Submitting, and Keeping a Copy
You sign the form in front of a Huntington representative at the branch. The representative verifies your ID and enters the designation into the bank’s records the same day. There is no fee to add, change, or remove beneficiaries.
Ask for a copy of the signed form and keep it with your important papers. It gives your family a clear record of which accounts transfer outside of probate and who is named on each one. The designation stays in effect until you sign a new form or close the account.
Huntington’s deposit agreement requires the signatures of all account owners on the form the bank provides. It does not require the form to be notarized.
Changing or Removing Beneficiaries Later
You can change or revoke a POD designation at any time while you are alive. Divorce, a new child, or a change in family circumstances are the common triggers. To make a change, go back to a branch and sign a new designation form. The most recent form on file replaces every earlier version. Verbal instructions, letters, emails, and instructions in your will have no effect on the designation.
That last point catches people off guard. A will does not override a POD form. The POD designation is a contract between you and the bank, and Huntington is obligated to pay whoever is named in its own records. If your will leaves the account to your daughter but your POD form names your son, your son receives the money.
Power of Attorney Cannot Usually Change Beneficiaries
Someone acting under a general power of attorney generally cannot change your POD beneficiaries. Changing a beneficiary designation is treated as a special power that has to be explicitly granted in the POA document itself. A general POA that authorizes banking transactions, bill payments, or deposits does not reach beneficiary designations. If you become incapacitated and a designation needs to be updated, your agent typically needs either a court order or a POA that specifically lists authority over beneficiary designations. If that matters to you, address it in the POA document while you can.
Naming a Minor as a Beneficiary
You can list a child or grandchild under 18 on the form, but minors cannot legally take direct ownership of significant financial assets. If a minor inherits POD funds, a custodian has to manage the money until the child reaches the age of majority, which is 18 or 21 depending on the state. If no custodian is in place, a parent or legal guardian usually fills the role, but a court may need to appoint one first. That court appointment can create exactly the kind of delay a POD designation is meant to avoid.
A cleaner option is to name a custodial account under the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act as the beneficiary, with a specific adult identified as custodian. Ask the Huntington representative how to structure the designation so the funds can be released without a court proceeding.