What happens to my bank account, and the 2FA code nobody can receive?
The 2FA problem resolves itself, but not the way people expect: an executor is never meant to log in as the deceased at all, so the two-factor code on a locked phone is a non-issue by design, not something that gets bypassed.
Bank of America's own description of what it does on notification of a customer's death makes this explicit. Among the "protective actions" it lists: "Suspending Online and Mobile Banking user ID and Telephone Banking, including Bill Pay." The bank locks online access down, rather than leaving it open for a family member to attempt. Source Instead, the whole process moves to a documentation-based estate-servicing track: a case is opened, and the bank asks for a "Photocopy of the death certificate" (a certified copy in some cases), plus court-issued authority — "Letters of Testamentary, Letters of Administration or Certification of Appointment" — or, for smaller estates, a state-compliant small-estate affidavit. Other actions taken automatically on notice: debit/ATM cards are closed, authorized users removed, autopay and recurring transfers canceled, and most fees suspended.
What happens to the money itself depends on how the account was titled — the CFPB is direct about joint accounts specifically: "When one account owner dies, the money passes to the surviving owner, or equally to the rest of the owners if there are multiple people on the account," unless the account is held as "tenants in common," in which case "that person's share of the account passes to their heirs." Source A sole-owner account with no joint holder or payable-on-death beneficiary instead becomes part of the probate estate, released to the executor once the bank has the documentation above.
What we could not verify: whether every major bank suspends online access immediately on notice the way Bank of America documents — this pass confirmed one bank's stated practice, not an industry-wide standard.
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