How beneficiaries get notified after a death depends on the kind of instrument holding the assets. If there’s a will, a court-appointed executor is legally required to send you written notice, usually within 30 days of their appointment. If there’s a trust, the trustee owes you written notice within 60 days. And if the assets pass outside probate at all, like life insurance or a 401(k), no one may be required to find you, and you may need to file the claim yourself.
When There Is a Will
After someone dies with a will, the person named as executor files the will with the probate court in the county where the deceased lived and asks the court for authority to administer the estate. Once the court formally appoints the executor (sometimes called a personal representative), the notification clock starts.
Under the framework adopted by a majority of states, the executor must send written notice to every beneficiary named in the will within 30 days of appointment. The same 30-day duty applies when someone dies without a will. In that case the court appoints an administrator, who must notify the people who stand to inherit under state intestacy law.
The notice itself is short. It gives the executor’s name and address, identifies the court handling the estate, and tells you that you have the right to request information about the administration and to petition the court on any matter connected to the estate. It usually arrives by regular mail. It is not a breakdown of what you’re inheriting. Treat it as a heads-up: a death, an estate being administered, a person in charge, and a court where you can look for more.
The executor also files a statement with the court listing everyone who was notified. After probate closes, the will becomes a public record, and while the case is open, beneficiaries and other interested parties can typically view the filings at the courthouse.
When There Is a Trust
Trusts skip probate, so the notification happens privately rather than through a court. When the person who created the trust dies, the successor trustee named in the document takes over. That trustee has a legal duty to notify all qualified beneficiaries within 60 days of the settlor’s death, or of learning that the trust has become irrevocable.
The notice has to tell you specific things: that the trust exists, who created it, the trustee’s name and contact information, your right to request a copy of the trust document, and your right to receive ongoing financial reports. A trust never becomes a public record, so this notice is usually your first and only signal that you have an interest.
The trustee’s job doesn’t end there. Beneficiaries entitled to distributions are owed at least an annual accounting showing the trust’s assets, liabilities, income, expenses, distributions, and the trustee’s compensation. You’re also entitled to an accounting when the trust ends or when the trustee changes.
When Assets Pass Outside Probate
A large share of inherited wealth never touches a will or a trust. Life insurance policies, 401(k)s, IRAs, pensions, and bank or brokerage accounts with payable-on-death or transfer-on-death designations all bypass probate. The deceased named you directly with the financial institution, and the estate’s executor has no control over those assets.
This is where many people get tripped up. The financial institution generally isn’t required to hunt you down. The traditional rule is that you have to start the process by contacting the institution, submitting a certified death certificate, and filling out a claim form. If you don’t know you were named, the money just sits.
Life insurance is the one area where this has shifted. A majority of states now require insurers to periodically cross-reference their policyholder records against the Social Security Death Master File. When a match turns up, the insurer must make a good-faith effort to locate the beneficiary. That doesn’t guarantee a phone call, but it does mean insurers can no longer wait indefinitely for a claim. If you suspect a deceased relative had a policy and no one has been in touch, contact the insurer yourself.
Extra Protection for Surviving Spouses
If your spouse had a pension or 401(k) governed by federal retirement law, you have rights beyond the beneficiary form. Under ERISA, the default payout from a pension plan is a qualified joint and survivor annuity, which keeps paying the surviving spouse after the participant dies. If the participant died before retirement, the surviving spouse is entitled to a qualified preretirement survivor annuity instead.1GovInfo. 29 U.S. Code 1055 – Requirement of Joint and Survivor Annuity and Preretirement Survivor Annuity
These benefits can only be waived if the spouse consents in writing, witnessed by a notary or a plan representative. A participant cannot simply name someone else and cut a spouse out without that documented consent.1GovInfo. 29 U.S. Code 1055 – Requirement of Joint and Survivor Annuity and Preretirement Survivor Annuity If you’re a surviving spouse and haven’t heard from the plan administrator, contact the plan directly. It is legally required to pay you unless your spouse properly waived the benefit with your consent during their lifetime.
A Separate Notice for Large Estates
Most beneficiaries will never see this, but if the estate is large enough to owe federal estate tax, you’ll get an extra piece of paper about tax basis. For deaths in 2026, an estate tax return (Form 706) is required when the gross estate exceeds $15,000,000.2Internal Revenue Service. Whats New Estate and Gift Tax3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 6018 – Estate Tax Returns
When Form 706 is required, the executor must also file Form 8971 with the IRS and give each beneficiary a Schedule A showing the reported value of the property they’re receiving. You generally cannot claim a tax basis higher than the value on that schedule, which is why it matters. The executor must get it to you within 30 days of filing the estate tax return, or 30 days after the return’s due date, whichever is earlier.4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8971 and Schedule A Delivery can be in person, by mail, by private delivery service, or by email. If you inherit from a large estate and don’t see this document, ask for it before you sell anything.
What to Do If No One Has Contacted You
If you think you should have inherited something and haven’t heard a word, don’t assume you were cut out. Start with the probate court in the county where the deceased lived. Probate filings are public, and you can search by name to see whether a will has been filed. If one has, request a copy and check for your name.
Trusts are harder because they’re private. Go through the deceased’s personal papers for trust documents, attorney correspondence, or financial statements that reference a trust. Reach out to any attorney or financial advisor the deceased worked with; they can often confirm whether a trust exists and who the trustee is.
For life insurance and retirement accounts, go straight to employers and financial institutions. A former employer’s plan administrator can tell you whether you’re listed on a 401(k) or pension. Life insurers will check their records if you ask. Even old employer-sponsored group life policies can carry meaningful payouts that beneficiaries never claim.
When nothing turns up, search your state’s unclaimed property database. Every state runs a program that takes custody of assets after a dormancy period, generally three to five years.5Investor.gov. Escheatment by Financial Institutions The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators runs a free multi-state search at MissingMoney.com. Billions of dollars sit in state treasuries, and a meaningful share of it belongs to beneficiaries who were never notified.
When an Executor or Trustee Won’t Tell You Anything
An executor who skips the required notices is breaching a fiduciary duty. That failure doesn’t strip their authority, but it does open the door to consequences. A beneficiary can petition the probate court to force the executor to provide information. If the executor’s inaction harms the estate, the court can remove them, order them to personally reimburse losses, or both.
Trustees face the same kind of accountability. A trustee who ignores the 60-day notice or refuses to send annual accountings is violating their role. Beneficiaries can petition a court to compel disclosure, and persistent refusal can lead to removal and personal liability.
Most notification failures are not malicious. Executors and trustees are often grieving family members who are in over their heads. A polite letter from a lawyer requesting information usually resolves things faster than a court filing. But if that doesn’t work, courts are not sympathetic to fiduciaries who stonewall the people they’re supposed to serve.