Notifying the bank of a client’s death
Anyone can notify the bank of a client’s death. To do so, call customer support on 669 0966 (8:30-19:00 Monday-Friday), e-mail klienditugi@cooppank.ee or visit your nearest branch.
If you notify the bank in person, make sure you have the client’s death certificate with you. If you don’t have the certificate but the death was registered in Estonia, the bank will check the information by making an inquiry in the Population Register.
If the death was registered abroad, the original or a notarised copy of any document issued abroad must also be apostilled. The requirements in this regard for documents from different countries can be found on the website of the Chamber of Notaries. The document must be submitted in Estonian, English or Russian, or translated into one of these languages. The translation must be provided by an Estonian sworn translator.
Following the death of a client, information about their account is provided to:
- a notary, who makes an enquiry to the bank in the course of succession proceedings to obtain information about the client’s assets, including any liabilities;
- the next of kin who covered the funeral costs, who is informed whether and how much money can be paid from the account to cover said expenses; and
- heirs, who are given information on the client’s assets (including all contracts entered into, transactions carried out and any liabilities) on the basis of a notarial certificate of succession. Heirs seeking information are asked to e-mail a digitally signed application together with their certificate of succession to klienditugi@cooppank.ee or to contact their nearest branch.
To avoid any arrears, please contact the bank.
- In the case of home loans, credit cards, small loans, hire purchase or Säästukaart Pluss, please e-mail the bank at klienditugi@cooppank.ee or visit your nearest branch.
- In the case of leasing, please e-mail liising@cooppank.ee or call 669 0937.
E-mails must be digitally signed so that we can identify the person contacting us.
The bank immediately terminates all standing orders in the client’s name, including those based on e-invoices, upon learning of their death. However, we don’t inform the beneficiaries of those payments of this – we recommend that close relatives do so, if needed.
Deposits form part of a client’s estate, which passes to their heir(s). This means that in order to dispose of a deceased client’s deposits, a certificate of succession must be submitted to the bank in advance.
If the heir wishes to do so, they can modify the terms of the deposit contract to the extent specified therein (e.g. by terminating its automatic extension) or arrange for the early termination of the contract. These things can only be done if the heir has submitted a certificate of succession to the bank. If there is more than one heir, they must apply collectively for these changes to be made.
The bank does not pay interest upon the early termination of a fixed-term deposit contract.
When the maturity date of a fixed-term deposit contract arrives, the deposit amount, including interest, is automatically credited to the current account of the deceased client and the heir(s) can request that it be paid out from said account.
No, because such authorisation becomes invalid upon the death of a client.
Funeral costs
The funeral grant is a lump sum paid out from the money in the deceased client’s account to a close relative to help cover the costs of organising the funeral. Coop Pank will execute a payment order for the payment of funeral expenses to a close relative of the deceased client (spouse, adult children or parents) or to the natural person who paid the funeral expenses upon the submission of a document evidencing said expenses within one month of the client’s death. If paid out via bank transfer or in cash, the transaction is subject to Coop Pank’s price list.
The following documents must be submitted to the bank in order for the funeral costs to be covered:
- a document certifying your relationship to the deceased (e.g. a birth or marriage certificate or an extract from the Population Register) or
- expense documents (incl. invoice(s), payment orders or other proof) showing that the applicant has already paid or is liable to pay the costs involved; and
- a personal identification document of the applicant.
It is important that the expense document is issued in the name of the person requesting the payment of the funeral grant, and that the name of the deceased appears on it.
The applicant assumes an obligation before the bank to return the money to the heirs if they so request.
Information related to succession
An heir is the person to whom the deceased’s property (estate) is transferred. Inheritance is possible by law, will or an agreement as to succession.
Under the law, inheritance takes place when the testator has not made a will or entered into an agreement as to succession. By law, heirs are the next of kin (in the order set out in the Succession Act) and the spouse or registered partner. Heirs of the first order are the children of the testator in equal shares. If there are no children, then heirs of the second order (the deceased’s parents and siblings) inherit. If there are no such heirs, then heirs of the third order (the deceased’s grandparents, uncles and aunts) inherit.
A spouse or registered partner always inherits alongside relatives, with his or her share of the inheritance depending on which order of heirs he or she inherits alongside.
If the testator has no relatives and no spouse or registered partner, or if they all renounce the inheritance and the deceased has no will or agreement as to succession, the inheritance goes to the local or national authority of the deceased’s place of residence.
If the testator made a will or entered into an agreement on succession, the inheritance takes place as set out in the document.
Heirs must apply to the Estonian notary of their choice to launch succession proceedings.
Note: A will alone is not considered a document proving the right of succession and is not used by the bank to pay out the estate. If a will exists, it must be submitted to the notary conducting the succession proceedings.
An heir can renounce an inheritance within three months of becoming aware of their right to succession. Note: If you wish to renounce the obligations of the testator, you must also renounce the other assets of the estate, i.e. you cannot solely renounce the obligations of the testator.
By accepting the inheritance, the heir is also responsible for meeting the obligations of the estate. We recommend consulting a notary about the need for an inventory of the estate. Once this has been carried out, the liability of the heir to meet the obligations of the testator is limited to the assets included in the estate.
Any wish to renounce an inheritance must be notarised before the notary conducting the succession proceedings, because if the heir(s) do(es) not do so within three months of learning of their right to succession, the inheritance is automatically deemed to have been accepted.
It is important to allow time for succession proceedings to be completed, since they usually take 1-3 months from the date on which the application is submitted to the notary.
Notarial services are subject to fees, the rates of which are set by law as the same for all notaries. Notary fees can be found on the website of the Chamber of Notaries.
In order to obtain an inheritance from the bank, you must submit documents certifying your right to succession (the succession certificate, an agreement on the division of the estate, etc.).
Documents can be submitted to the bank as follows:
- The heir e-mails the documents, digitally signed by the notary, along with their contact details to klienditugi@cooppank.ee.
- The heir brings the original documents in to their nearest branch.
In addition, an order to the bank to pay out the estate must be submitted.
If there is more than one heir, the application must be signed jointly by all heirs, indicating the parts in which the payment should be paid out by the bank.
If the heirs have already divided up an estate held in Coop Pank by way of a notarised agreement, it is enough if only the heir to whom the estate in the bank has been assigned by the agreement submits the agreement to the bank together with the order for paying out the estate.
If the documents are submitted electronically to the bank, we will contact the beneficiary within three working days of receiving them.
If the notary has indicated on the succession certificate that the deceased had common property with their spouse, the consent of said spouse for the payments to be made must also be submitted to the bank. It is enough for the spouse to add their signature to the payout order.
If there is more than one heir and at least one is a minor or an adult with restricted active legal capacity, then in addition to the order for the estate to be paid out, you must submit to the bank a valid court order with its consent for the division of the estate in the manner requested by the heirs.
The bank can execute an order for the payment of the inheritance submitted by the heirs if the court order submitted alongside it has entered into force, as evidenced by the court’s acknowledgement on the submitted document.
If paid out via bank transfer or in cash, the transaction is subject to Coop Pank’s price list.
For more information, visit the website of the Chamber of Notaries or review the Succession Act.