This Letter of Instructions for Widows is intended to be a guide for information needed in case of death and should not be considered a legal document.
Letter of Instructions for surviving spouses
Prepared on date:____________________________
Upon my death, the following must be notified as soon as possible:
Wife’s income after my death should be approximately $__________ per month from Railroad Retirement. This is approximate – the exact figure would be computed by them according to Rules in effect at that time. Railroad Retirement pays my pension only thru ___________last day of the month immediately preceding death. In other words, if I die on the 28th of July, the check which would arrive on August 1 would have to be returned to Headquarters, US Railroad Retirement Board, 844 Rush Street, Chicago, IL 60611 as that check pays for month of July and I would be entitled to pension only through June 30th. Wife gets separate check from Railroad Retirement and she would also have to return the check received on August 1. All wife’s subsequent checks would be larger as she would be entitled to her present amount plus the percentage of what I now receive. A form will also be received by wife to fill in how much she wants deducted for income taxes. Law requires a certain minimum amount.
All income tax records and papers are located ______________________________. All income taxes are paid through date ____________________________.
All records for the automobile(s) title, service records, etc. are located ____________________.
All medical records for wife and myself are located ________________________________________.
Wills are located ___________________________________________________________________________.
All bank passbooks, CD Certificates, stocks, bonds, etc. are located ________________________.
All important military records are located __________________________________________________.
Property taxes on any home have been paid thru date_____________________________________.
Our burial plots are in __________________________________cemetery. Deed to cemetery lots are located___________________________________________________.
You need to contact our lawyer as to current inheritance tax laws of Federal and State residence.
Homeowners insurance is with ________________________________________________. Policy is located __________________________________________________. Insurance now paid thru end of _____________________________________________________________________________________________.
Insurance on automobile (s) is with ____________________________________________. Policies are located_________________________________________________________.
Medical Insurance – we are covered by Medicare. Contact our secondary coverage agent OneExchange at 1-888-612-8212 for information on continuation of coverage as a surviving spouse. To pay for Medicare, they deduct from wife’s Railroad Retirement check and make a monthly premium. This amount is subject to change each year.
Dental insurance is with_____________________________________________________.
Eye care insurance is with___________________________________________________.
Safe Deposit Box is located__________________________________________________.
Social Security Numbers are: Husband __________________ Wife___________________
Following is a list of our credit cards: Husband______________________________________________________________________________________
Wife__________________________________________________________________________________________
Telephones belong to:________________________________________________________________________
Military Serial Number Enlisted:_______________________________________________________________
Officer:________________________________________________________________
As information, I have listed below the following people to be contacted upon my death:
Name Phone No.
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
Miscellaneous Bills
Cable TV $________________________________________________Per month.
Newspapers Daily & Sunday paid thru_________________________________.
Magazines (various) paid thru_________________________________________.
Gas, electric & telephone_____________________________________________.
Various charge cards payable each month – list each_______________________
__________________________________________________________________
Water Bill monthly and/or quarterly total: about $_________________________
Doctor & Dental bills not fully covered by Insurance_______________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Lawn service bills $__________________________________________________________
Below in chronological order are our regular major payments to be made – memberships dues in various organizations:
Organization Dues
_____________________________________ $___________________
_____________________________________ $___________________
_____________________________________ $___________________
Bank Accounts
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
Money Market Accounts
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
CDs
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
401k
_______________________________________ $____________________
Safe Deposit Box
_______________________________________ $____________________
Other
_______________________________________ $____________________
Total Assets $____________________
Form revised July,2015
letter_of_instructions_for_widow.pdf
Letter of Instructions for surviving spouses
Prepared on date:____________________________
Upon my death, the following must be notified as soon as possible:
- Notify US Railroad Retirement Board (1-877-772-5772). You should give my Social Security Number _____________ and the fact that I worked for CSX (or prior road) from date ___________to date ___________and retired on ________________. Wife may be eligible to continue to receive monthly check from Railroad Retirement.
- Contact the CSX Benefits Department, Post Office Box 44065, Jacksonville, FL 32231-4055, email or telephone (1-904-359-2345). You should give them my Social Security Number _______________ or employee ID ___________. Wife will continue to receive monthly check from CSX. They will also make payment of my CSX Life Insurance $__________________.
- Call Mr. _____________________. He is our lawyer who prepared our Wills. Obtain charges from him in advance as to what his fees will be for probating the Will. You should have him prepare a new Will for you after my death. __________________ is the Executor of my estate.
- Call ___________________Funeral Home, address ____________________________, Phone number_________________. They take care of obtaining copies of Death Certificate, probably need about 10 copies. Sometimes they notify Railroad Retirement, Social Security and Veterans Administration. Follow-up with Funeral Home as to their policy.
- Contact Clergyman to conduct services.
- Contact ________________________ and he will notify RABO, Cheers and whatever other organizations one belongs to. He can also round up the six pallbearers.
- For Retired Army Officers Only – contact Casualty Assistance Office (CAO), Fort Meade, telephone 1-301-677-2206. In addition to Death Certificate, the CAO will require a copy of my Birth Certificate, Marriage License and Army Discharge Certificate. The CAO will assist in filing of forms to secure Survivor Benefits Payment (SBP) for wife. He will also assist in filing papers for any benefits I have coming from Veterans Administration such as insurance, death benefits, headstone, etc.
- $_______________ from CSX. Contact MetLife at 1-800-310-7770. Don’t have a policy but don’t need one; I pay no premiums. MetLife offers options for receipt of proceeds.
- $_______________ from Government Life Insurance (GI Insurance). There are policies involved numbers _____________________________________. They are located _________________________________. To collect, copy of Death Certificate should be mailed to Veterans Administration, PO Box 8079, Philadelphia, PA 91011, Phone no. 1-800-669-8477.
Wife’s income after my death should be approximately $__________ per month from Railroad Retirement. This is approximate – the exact figure would be computed by them according to Rules in effect at that time. Railroad Retirement pays my pension only thru ___________last day of the month immediately preceding death. In other words, if I die on the 28th of July, the check which would arrive on August 1 would have to be returned to Headquarters, US Railroad Retirement Board, 844 Rush Street, Chicago, IL 60611 as that check pays for month of July and I would be entitled to pension only through June 30th. Wife gets separate check from Railroad Retirement and she would also have to return the check received on August 1. All wife’s subsequent checks would be larger as she would be entitled to her present amount plus the percentage of what I now receive. A form will also be received by wife to fill in how much she wants deducted for income taxes. Law requires a certain minimum amount.
All income tax records and papers are located ______________________________. All income taxes are paid through date ____________________________.
All records for the automobile(s) title, service records, etc. are located ____________________.
All medical records for wife and myself are located ________________________________________.
Wills are located ___________________________________________________________________________.
All bank passbooks, CD Certificates, stocks, bonds, etc. are located ________________________.
All important military records are located __________________________________________________.
Property taxes on any home have been paid thru date_____________________________________.
Our burial plots are in __________________________________cemetery. Deed to cemetery lots are located___________________________________________________.
You need to contact our lawyer as to current inheritance tax laws of Federal and State residence.
Homeowners insurance is with ________________________________________________. Policy is located __________________________________________________. Insurance now paid thru end of _____________________________________________________________________________________________.
Insurance on automobile (s) is with ____________________________________________. Policies are located_________________________________________________________.
Medical Insurance – we are covered by Medicare. Contact our secondary coverage agent OneExchange at 1-888-612-8212 for information on continuation of coverage as a surviving spouse. To pay for Medicare, they deduct from wife’s Railroad Retirement check and make a monthly premium. This amount is subject to change each year.
Dental insurance is with_____________________________________________________.
Eye care insurance is with___________________________________________________.
Safe Deposit Box is located__________________________________________________.
Social Security Numbers are: Husband __________________ Wife___________________
Following is a list of our credit cards: Husband______________________________________________________________________________________
Wife__________________________________________________________________________________________
Telephones belong to:________________________________________________________________________
Military Serial Number Enlisted:_______________________________________________________________
Officer:________________________________________________________________
As information, I have listed below the following people to be contacted upon my death:
Name Phone No.
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
__________________________________ _____________________________
Miscellaneous Bills
Cable TV $________________________________________________Per month.
Newspapers Daily & Sunday paid thru_________________________________.
Magazines (various) paid thru_________________________________________.
Gas, electric & telephone_____________________________________________.
Various charge cards payable each month – list each_______________________
__________________________________________________________________
Water Bill monthly and/or quarterly total: about $_________________________
Doctor & Dental bills not fully covered by Insurance_______________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Lawn service bills $__________________________________________________________
Below in chronological order are our regular major payments to be made – memberships dues in various organizations:
Organization Dues
_____________________________________ $___________________
_____________________________________ $___________________
_____________________________________ $___________________
Bank Accounts
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
Money Market Accounts
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
CDs
_______________________________________ $____________________
_______________________________________ $____________________
401k
_______________________________________ $____________________
Safe Deposit Box
_______________________________________ $____________________
Other
_______________________________________ $____________________
Total Assets $____________________
Form revised July,2015
letter_of_instructions_for_widow.pdf