I generally recommend against naming your estate as a beneficiary for any assets. Certain bank and brokerage accounts will also pass outside your Will.To close a bank account on behalf of someone who has passed away, you must have legal authority to manage the account. Get a copy of the death certificate. This set provides coverage of every aspect of probate law and estate and trust administration in Texas. It includes sample forms and letters. Probate is the legal process to distribute a person's property after they die. Fill it out for the deceased, but don't forge the name. You can use this letter template to write to the bank to request the closure of a direct payments account following the death of the account holder. Learn how some of a deceased person's assets and debts can be distributed without going to court.