In the initial stages of claiming the assets, everything was going well until I found out that the belligerent beneficiary (beneficiary) was the new owner of the safe deposit box (the box). As described in the article Opening the Safe Deposit Box of an Estate, the executor must follow a process to open a safe deposit box. So, as executor, I had to carry out the following tasks after the gruesome discovery:  

• Call the beneficiary. Inform the beneficiary that, as the owner of the safe deposit box, they must be present to open the box.   

• Instruct the beneficiary to call the bank and set an appointment to open the box.

• Since the key wasn’t found on the estate, ask the beneficiary about the key.

The Belligerent Beneficiary

While on the phone with the belligerent beneficiary, I knew the beneficiary would take this opportunity to try to extort more property from the estate. As the business part of the call ended, sure enough, the conversation switched to personal property. The beneficiary felt entitled to more property and didn’t hold back expressing that point. When I denied the request, the beneficiary threatened to sue me. As I ended the call, I knew the journey to the safe deposit box just became an adventure.

The Conversation to Schedule the Opening

A few days after the call, the belligerent beneficiary called me. Initially, the call was to tell me when the opening of the box will take place. Although the beneficiary arranged the opening date, the arrangements were conditional. Apparently, the beneficiary decided to make this process a family affair for closure. After holding back laughter, I replied, “You can bring anyone you want to the boring process. In fact, you can make it an event and sell tickets to the public if you want. However, only you and I with a banking official can view the contents in the viewing room. Anyone you bring has to wait in the lobby. So, I think that condition is absurd”. The beneficiary paused to give some thought to what I said, then eventually agreed with me. The beneficiary dropped the idea.

Unfortunately, the beneficiary wasn’t done with the conversation. The beneficiary transitioned, once again, to the personal property of the estate. Abruptly, I ended the conversation by saying, “You threatened a lawsuit in our last conversation. So, hire an attorney and we’ll let the attorneys decide the issue”. After that reply, the conversation ended and we didn’t talk again until the day of the appointment.

The Meeting at the Bank

The day of the appointment was a day of discovery. The belligerent beneficiary arrived on time with the spouse. From my car, I saw them yelling at each other walking into the bank. Seeing this behavior, I decided to wait in the car until the couple walked into the bank. When they entered the bank, I headed into the bank. Once in the bank, I approached the couple and thanked them for helping me open the safe deposit box. The beneficiary responded by asking for five minutes alone in the viewing room while the couple looked through the box. Before I could respond, the bank official arrived at her desk. The bank official asked for the $75.00 fee to have the locksmith drill open the box. The process began immediately after handing the bank official a check for the fee.

Opening the Safe Deposit Box

The process started when the beneficiary and the bank official went in back to witness the drilling of the box. With the drilling completed, the bank official took the box to a viewing room where all interested parties could view the contents. However, before anyone could go into the viewing room, they had to sign a log book. When I signed the log book, I noticed that my Uncle opened the box about a month before his death. Knowing my Uncle, I knew there was nothing in the box. My Uncle, in failing health, would never store property without telling me. So, I knew there was nothing of value belonging to him in the box.

Knowing that there was nothing of value in the box, I just wanted to get the process over. So, with the box in the viewing room, the beneficiary opened the box. The only item in the box was an old will belonging to my Uncle’s wife. Since there was nothing to inventory, the process ended with no further skirmishes from the belligerent beneficiary.

After the Closing

As I left the bank, the beneficiary and spouse were outside. Again, I thanked the couple for driving three hours to help me close the safe deposit box. This time they were gracious, which surprised me. In fact, we engaged in small talk for about a half hour. At the end of the chat, the beneficiary wasn’t shy about asking for more stuff if it became available. This made me laugh as I excused myself and headed home.

When I arrived home, I informed the attorney that there was nothing in the box and to forget about any lawsuit. They never had any intention to sue. On that day, not only did I discover that my Uncle emptied the box before his death, I also discovered that the belligerent beneficiary was nothing more than a nuisance.

Do you agree with the way I handled the belligerent beneficiary? Do you have questions concerning this article? Did you find the article helpful? Enter your questions and comments in the comments section below.