The bank will not allow you to close it unless you have a letter of authorization from the probate court. To close a bank account on behalf of someone who has passed away, you must have legal authority to manage the account.Click on the link(s) for the forms you'd like to download. 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. To close a bank account after death, you must completely liquidate its funds. A payable on death (POD) designation means your bank account automatically transfers to a beneficiary upon the death of all account owners and co-owners. Keep in mind that the probate process cannot be initiated without a Petition on file. Alert: For a better experience on Congress. Gov, please enable JavaScript in your browser. Navigation. Notify Bank of America.