To set up a Regions Bank payable-on-death beneficiary form, you notify the bank in writing — either by visiting a branch or by calling 1-800-734-4667 — and give the banker each beneficiary’s full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and current address for every account you want covered.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement2Regions Bank. Contact Us By Phone – Customer Service Numbers Regions does not publish a standalone POD form online; the bank generates the paperwork for you once you ask, and the designation attaches per account.
What You Need Before You Fill It Out
Gather the following for every person you plan to name:
- Full legal name, exactly as it appears on their government-issued ID.
- Date of birth.
- Social Security number, which the bank uses for tax reporting when funds are distributed.
- Current residential address.
You also need the account numbers for every Regions account you want the designation to cover. A POD designation applies per account. If you have three accounts and want all three to pass to the same person, each account needs its own designation on file. Check the numbers against a recent statement before you go. One transposed digit creates problems you won’t see until it’s too late to fix.
Where to Get the Form and How to Submit It
Regions requires written notice to add, change, or remove POD beneficiaries.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement The most reliable path is in person at a branch: a banker pulls up your accounts, hands you the correct form, and processes the change while you wait. You can find your nearest location at regions.com/locator.3Regions Bank. Find a Regions Bank Near You – Branches and ATMs
If a branch visit is not practical, call 1-800-734-4667 and ask about options for submitting a written beneficiary change.2Regions Bank. Contact Us By Phone – Customer Service Numbers One thing to know up front: the Deposit Agreement reserves the bank’s right to require you to close the existing account and open a new one in order to change beneficiaries.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement It’s uncommon, but it’s in the contract.
Which Accounts Qualify
You can add a POD designation to any Regions deposit account, including checking, savings, money market deposit accounts, time deposits, and certificates of deposit.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement Each account carries its own beneficiary list, so you can direct different accounts to different people.
Accounts opened in your name “for the benefit of” another person — without a separate written trust agreement — are treated by Regions as POD arrangements. Funds pass to the living beneficiaries when the last depositor dies, outside the control of your will.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement
Naming More Than One Beneficiary
You can list multiple beneficiaries on a single account. If you don’t specify shares, Regions pays the surviving beneficiaries in equal portions by default.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement Three names means thirds. If you want a 60/40 split, or any other unequal division, say so on the form and confirm the bank’s records reflect it before you leave.
A detail that catches people off guard: if a named beneficiary dies before you, their share is divided among the surviving beneficiaries, not passed to the deceased beneficiary’s own heirs. If no named beneficiary outlives you, the money reverts to your estate and goes through probate.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement Review your designations whenever a beneficiary dies.
Minors can be named.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement Keep in mind the bank may not release funds directly to a child, so a court-appointed guardian or a custodian under your state’s Uniform Transfers to Minors Act would likely receive the money on the minor’s behalf.
Joint Accounts Change the Picture
If you hold a joint account with right of survivorship, the POD designation does not trigger when the first co-owner dies. The surviving co-owner becomes the sole owner, free to spend the money, change the beneficiary, or close the account. The POD beneficiary receives funds only when the last surviving owner dies.
If the joint account does not carry right of survivorship, Alabama law — which governs Regions deposit accounts — says the POD designation on that account is ineffective.4Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 5-24-12 – Rights at Death Before you fill out the form on a joint account, ask the banker to confirm the account structure includes survivorship.
Updating or Revoking the Designation Later
The POD designation is fully revocable while you’re alive. Your beneficiaries have no legal interest in the funds and no right to be told you changed your mind.1Regions Bank. Deposit Agreement You can update after a divorce, after a birth, after a falling out, as often as you want. You submit the change in writing, the bank updates its records, and nobody else’s permission is needed.5OneCle. Alabama Code Title 5 Chapter 24 – Uniform Multiple-Person Accounts Act
What the Form Does Not Do
A POD designation moves money outside probate, but it has limits worth understanding before you sign.
It overrides your will. A POD transfer is not testamentary and is not subject to estate administration under Alabama law.6Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 5-24-14 – Transfers Nontestamentary If your will leaves the account to your sister but the POD form names your daughter, your daughter gets the money. The bank follows its own records. People accidentally disinherit someone this way by updating one document and forgetting the other.
It does not shelter the funds from estate tax. The balance remains part of your taxable estate for federal estate tax purposes even though it skips probate.
It may not protect the money from your creditors. If your probate estate can’t cover what you owed, creditors and tax authorities may be able to reach POD funds to satisfy outstanding claims. Beneficiaries can end up receiving money that the executor later tries to recover. If you carry significant debts, talk to an estate planning attorney about how your POD designations fit with the rest of your finances.
Finally, if you live in a community property state — Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, or Wisconsin — naming someone other than your spouse as a POD beneficiary on an account funded with marital assets can create legal complications. Your spouse generally has a claim to half of community property, and a non-spouse designation without spousal consent may not hold up. Some banks in these states require a signed spousal consent form; even where Regions does not, a surviving spouse could challenge the designation later. Get written consent or speak with an attorney before you finalize the form.