2021 Colorado Code
Title 15 - Probate, Trusts, and Fiduciaries
Article 15 - Nonprobate Transfers on Death
Part 2 - Multiple-Person Accounts
§ 15-15-212. Rights at Death

1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, on death of a party sums on deposit in a multiple-party account belong to the surviving party or parties. If two or more parties survive and one is the surviving spouse of the decedent, the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 15-15-211 belongs to the surviving spouse. If two or more parties survive and none is the surviving spouse of the decedent, the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 15-15-211 belongs to the surviving parties in equal shares, and augments the proportion to which each survivor, immediately before the decedent's death, was beneficially entitled under section 15-15-211, and the right of survivorship continues between the surviving parties.
2. In an account with a POD designation:
   1. On death of one of two or more parties, the rights in sums on deposit are governed by subsection (1).
   2. 1. On death of the sole party or the last survivor of two or more parties, sums on deposit belong to the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries. If two or more beneficiaries survive, sums on deposit belong to them in such proportions as specified in the POD designation or, if the POD designation does not specify different proportions, in equal and undivided shares; and there is no right of survivorship in the event of death of a beneficiary thereafter. (b) (I) On death of the sole party or the last survivor of two or more parties, sums on deposit belong to the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries. If two or more beneficiaries survive, sums on deposit belong to them in such proportions as specified in the POD designation or, if the POD designation does not specify different proportions, in equal and undivided shares; and there is no right of survivorship in the event of death of a beneficiary thereafter.
      2. If there are two or more beneficiaries, and if any beneficiary fails to survive the sole party or the last survivor of two or more parties, sums on deposit belong to the surviving beneficiaries in proportion to their respective interests as beneficiaries under subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (b).
      3. If no beneficiary survives, sums on deposit belong to the estate of the last surviving party.
      4. Neither the provisions of section 15-11-706 nor the provisions of any other anti-lapse statute apply to the disposition of an account with a POD designation.

3. Sums on deposit in a single-party account without a POD designation, or in a multiple-party account that, by the terms of the account, is without right of survivorship, are not affected by death of a party, but the amount to which the decedent, immediately before death, was beneficially entitled under section 15-15-211 is transferred as part of the decedent's estate. A POD designation in a multiple-party account without right of survivorship is ineffective. For purposes of this section, designation of an account as a tenancy in common establishes that the account is without right of survivorship.
4. The ownership right of a surviving party or beneficiary, or of the decedent's estate, in sums on deposit is subject to requests for payment made by a party before the party's death, whether paid by the financial institution before or after death, or unpaid. The surviving party or beneficiary, or the decedent's estate, is liable to the payee of an unpaid request for payment. The liability is limited to a proportionate share of the amount transferred under this section, to the extent necessary to discharge the request for payment.
5. Sums remaining on deposit at the death of a party to a multiple-party account, which are not subject to a POD designation, belong to the surviving party or parties as against the estate of the decedent unless there is clear and convincing evidence of a different intention.

History. Source: L. 90: Entire article R&RE, p. 913, § 1, effective July 1. L. 91: (5) added, p. 1452, § 18, effective July 1. L. 2013: (2)(b) amended,(HB 13-1016), ch. 82, p. 265, § 1, effective March 29.

1. This section is similar to former § 15-15-104 as it existed prior to 1990.
2. Section 2 of chapter 82, Session Laws of Colorado 2013, provides that the act amending subsection (2)(b) applies to all accounts with a pay-on-death designation, whether created before, on, or after March 29, 2013.

Annotator's note. The following annotations include cases decided under former provision similar to this section.

When a payable on death account is subject to a pledge agreement, and the account holder dies, the account holder's personal representative has authority over the account only as to the amount secured by the pledge agreement. In re Estate of Treviño, 2020 COA 125 , 474 P.3d 223.

The survivorship provisions of this section were not applicable since the execution of the power of attorney rendered the decedent the agent of the surviving parties rather than a party to a joint account. Goemmer v. Hartman, 791 P.2d 1238 (Colo. App. 1990).

Applied in In re Estate of Beasley, 40 Colo. App. 347, 578 P.2d 662 (1978).