estate as beneficiary

[Scuba 401]

small account ($3,500). the participant has no beneficiary or it appears next of kin. the plan says the account needs to be paid to the estate. does anyone know what the procedure is or have any experience with these payouts where there is no estate or next of kin to assist.

[mbozek]

small account ($3,500). the participant has no beneficiary or it appears next of kin. the plan says the account needs to be paid to the estate. does anyone know what the procedure is or have any experience with these payouts where there is no estate or next of kin to assist.

You could pay some service to locate a relative who could be a beneficiary. Or forfeit the benefit b/c of the failure to locate the beneficiary. Finally you could find a local offical such as a county administrator who would take custody of assets that are the property of residents who die intestate.