Phase 1 · Secure the FoundationStep 7 of 14~3 min read

Beneficiary Sweep

A form overrides your will. Make sure yours says what you mean.

This step takes about 20 minutes, costs nothing, and fixes the single most preventable estate planning mistake people make. Every retirement account, life insurance policy, and TOD bank account you own pays out based on a beneficiary form — not your will. If that form is outdated, the money goes to whoever is named on it. Check every account. Fix what needs fixing. Done.

Your goal (WIG) Go from unknown / outdated to verified beneficiaries on 100% of accounts, within 2 days.

Why this comes next

A beneficiary form beats your will in court. Every time.

Your will is a legal document describing your wishes. Beneficiary designations are a contract with a financial institution. When they conflict, the contract wins — regardless of what your will says, regardless of what you intended. Estate attorneys call outdated beneficiary forms the most common and most preventable estate planning mistake they see. People die with an ex-spouse listed on a 401(k). The current spouse and children are named in the will. The ex-spouse gets the money. The will has no say in the matter.

~20 min

That's all this step requires — start to finish. It's free, requires no attorneys or professionals, and protects every dollar you've built in this plan so far. The accounts where you've worked hardest to build wealth are the exact ones that bypass your will entirely.

It connects directly to Steps 2 and 8

The term life insurance policy you arranged in Step 2 is the largest single payout you may ever set up. It pays exactly who you named on the application — which is why naming beneficiaries correctly at application time was called out there. Now you verify it along with every other account. Step 8 (Estate Documents) comes next — your will and these designations should tell the same story.

What to understand

Two concepts. One rule each.

Concept 1 — Designations supersede the will. A beneficiary designation is not a suggestion. It is a legally binding contract that overrides every other document you have — including a will drafted yesterday. This applies to every retirement account (401k, IRA, Roth, HSA), every life insurance policy, and every bank account with a TOD or POD designation. If you want your current spouse to receive your 401(k), that person must be named on the 401(k) form. The will is irrelevant.

Concept 2 — Name a primary and a contingent on every account. The primary beneficiary receives the funds when you die. The contingent beneficiary receives them if the primary is already deceased. Without a contingent, the money may default to your estate — triggering probate, delays, and potential taxes. Without any beneficiary at all, the same thing happens. Naming both takes one extra minute per account and eliminates a significant risk.

Three designations that cause problems

Minor children named directly — a court must manage the funds until the child turns 18, often consuming years and legal fees. Use a custodial arrangement (UTMA) or a trust instead. Your estate — subjects the money to probate, which is slow, public, and can be contested. A deceased person — the funds default to the estate anyway, defeating the purpose. Review every account and remove all three.

The accounts that carry designations

Every one of these bypasses your will

This is your sweep checklist. Every account type below has a beneficiary form on file with the institution — not in your will, not with an attorney. You must log in to each one separately and verify or update it.

Employer retirement

401(k) / 403(b)

Often requires spousal consent to name anyone other than a spouse as primary

Individual retirement

Traditional IRA

Held at your brokerage or bank — log in and confirm. Easily overlooked on old accounts

Individual retirement

Roth IRA

Same as Traditional IRA — separate form even if held at the same institution

Health savings

HSA

Often overlooked — check the HSA custodian's portal specifically, not just your health insurance

Insurance

Life insurance

All policies — employer group coverage and individual term (Step 2). Verify the carrier's form directly

Banking

TOD / POD accounts

Transfer-on-death (brokerage) or payable-on-death (bank). Optional to set up, but powerful if you have them

Old 401(k)s from previous jobs

These are the most commonly forgotten accounts — and the most likely to have outdated designations. If you left a job and never rolled over the old 401(k), find it, log in, and check the beneficiary form. If you need help locating it, the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits (unclaimedretirementbenefits.com) can help.

Run it · do this now

Your goal, your moves, your scoreboard

This step is a sprint, not a marathon. Set aside 20 minutes, open each account portal, and work through the checklist. The scoreboard is a simple checkmark per account.

WIG · locked

Unknown / outdated → verified beneficiaries on 100% of accounts, within 2 days.

Lead measures · pick 1–3

★ List every account that carries a beneficiary — start here
Log in and confirm or update the primary on each
Add a contingent anywhere one is missing
Cross-check designations match your will and current intentions

Scoreboard · locked

Account checklist — one green check per confirmed account. Track: X of N verified. Done when every box is checked.

Tools

Log directly into each account portal — 401(k) provider, IRA/brokerage, HSA custodian, life insurance carrier. For old accounts you've lost track of, the National Registry of Unclaimed Retirement Benefits (unclaimedretirementbenefits.com) and the Department of Labor's Abandoned Plan Search can locate old 401(k)s. For anything involving trusts or minors, a brief consultation with an estate attorney (who you may already plan to see in Step 8) is worth it.

How to do it, step by step

Four moves in one sitting

Here's exactly how to work each move from the lead measures above — skip to whichever one you're on.

Your recommended default designations

Start here if you're unsure — adjust to your situation.

Primary beneficiary

Spouse or partner

If married: spouse on most accounts. Single: closest intended heir

Contingent beneficiary

Children (adult) or next of kin

If children are minors, use a UTMA or trust — never name them directly

Never name

Your estate

Triggers probate; defeats the purpose of having the form

Never name

A minor child directly

Court intervention required until age 18 — a trust or UTMA handles this correctly

Write out every account that carries a beneficiary designation.

Use the six account types above as your checklist. Include old 401(k)s from previous employers — these are the most likely to have outdated designations. Your Step 0.2 debt and asset list is a good starting point for the complete account inventory.

Most account portals have a "Beneficiary" section under Settings or Profile. Read exactly who is named — primary and contingent — and confirm the percentages add up to 100%. Don't rely on memory or old paperwork; log in and confirm the live form.

Update anything outdated, missing, or wrong.

Change any ex-spouse, deceased person, or "my estate" to the correct person or trust. Add a contingent beneficiary on every account that's missing one. On a 401(k), naming anyone other than a spouse as primary typically requires spousal consent — follow the plan's instructions.

Cross-check: do your designations match your will and your current intentions?

Your will (which you'll formalize in Step 8) and your beneficiary forms should tell the same story. If they conflict, the form wins — not the will. If you don't yet have a will, make a note of your intentions here so Step 8 can align with them.

You're done with Step 7 when

Every account has the right name on it

Every account that carries a beneficiary designation has a confirmed primary — a living person or a trust, not your estate.

Every account has a confirmed contingent beneficiary — so no account defaults to probate if the primary isn't available.

Your designations are consistent with your current intentions. No ex-spouses, no deceased persons, no outdated arrangements. Step 8 (Estate Documents) will align the will to match.

A recurring annual calendar reminder is set to repeat this sweep — life changes, and so should your designations. Automate the review so it never gets pushed off.

Questions, myths & mistakes

The objections — answered straight

My will says who gets everything — doesn't that cover it?

No. This is the most important thing to understand about beneficiary designations: they operate entirely outside your will. A will controls assets that go through probate — personal property, real estate without a title transfer, bank accounts without a POD. Retirement accounts, IRAs, life insurance, and TOD accounts bypass probate completely and pay the named beneficiary directly. Your will has zero say. Beneficiary forms on these accounts must be updated directly at each institution.

Can I just name my minor child as beneficiary?

Not directly, and not without consequences. Minors can't legally receive large financial transfers on their own. If a minor is named directly, a court will appoint a guardian to manage the funds — a process that can be slow, expensive, and contested. The right solution is to name a trust as beneficiary (which directs assets to the trust for the child's benefit) or set up a Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) account that transfers automatically when the child reaches the age specified in your state. An estate attorney can help with the right structure, which you'll likely set up in Step 8.

What about naming "my estate" as beneficiary?

Avoid it. Naming your estate means the account loses its "bypass probate" advantage entirely. The funds get pulled into probate — a public legal process that can take months, cost thousands in legal fees, and be contested by anyone with a claim. It eliminates the key benefit of a beneficiary form. Name a real person or a trust instead. The only time naming the estate makes sense is in a specific legal or tax strategy designed by an attorney — not as a default.

My 401(k) requires spousal consent — what does that mean?

ERISA (the federal law governing most employer retirement plans) requires that if you're married, your spouse is automatically the primary beneficiary of your 401(k) unless they consent in writing to a different arrangement. If you want to name someone other than your spouse — even a child, a parent, or a trust — your spouse must sign a waiver, often notarized. This is a legal protection, not a bureaucratic inconvenience. Check your plan's documentation or HR portal for the spousal consent form.

Avoid these

Forgetting old 401(k)s from previous jobs — these have a form on file with a custodian you may not have thought about in years.
No contingent beneficiary — if the primary predeceases you, the funds default to your estate and go through probate.
Naming a minor child directly — court management of the funds until age 18 is slow, expensive, and avoidable.
Doing this once and never reviewing it — every major life change (marriage, divorce, death of a named beneficiary, new child) requires a re-sweep.