Savings & Investing | Federal Share Insurance
WHO PAYS FOR FEDERAL SHARE INSURANCE?
The cost for this important credit union benefit is borne
by credit unions. Your shares and savings are not only
insured by this federal fund – the fund is also backed by
the full faith and credit of the United States government.
In fact, not one penny of insured savings has ever been
lost by a member of a federally insured credit union.
ARE SHARES IN DIFFERENT CREDIT UNIONS INSURED SEPARATELY?
Yes. If a member has accounts in several different
insured credit unions, the maximum of $250,000 is applicable to share accounts in each insured credit union. In the case of a credit union having one or more
branches, the main office and all branch offices are considered as one credit union.
ARE RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS INSURED?
Separate coverage is available for Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and certain other retirement accounts that are self-directed. Accounts in this ownership category are insured to $250,000.
FEDERAL SHARE INSURANCE: YOUR WARRANTY OF SAFETY
Credit unions insured by the National Credit Union
Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF), an arm of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), are
protected by federal deposit insurance. NCUA is an independent agency of the United States government.
HOW MUCH COVERAGE DOES EACH CREDIT UNION MEMBER HAVE?
Share accounts in federally insured credit unions are insured up to $250,000 – just as with FDIC coverage at banks. Generally, if a credit union member has more than one individual account in the same insured credit union, those accounts are added together and are insured up to $250,000.
However, shares maintained in different legal ownership capacities may each be separately insured, which means that you may be able to keep substantially more funds at
the credit union – conveniently and safely – and still have every dollar protected by federal insurance. The examples in this brochure show some of the account
combinations that can maximize your insurance coverage at one credit union.
MAXIMIZE YOUR NCUA INSURANCE COVERAGE. SEE EXAMPLES BELOW.
DOES THE TYPE OF ACCOUNT DETERMINE COVERAGE AMOUNTS?
Yes. Most credit union members will be concerned with four types of accounts. Each type of account receives
insurance coverage separate from other accounts at the credit union. To determine how your accounts are covered,
add up all account balances within each type and check if they are at or below the maximum coverage amounts listed.
• Individual Accounts are insured up to $250,000 per
member.
• Joint Accounts are insured up to $250,000 per joint
account holder (assuming equal interests in the joint
account).
• Retirement Accounts are insured up to $250,000 per
member. This includes traditional and Roth Individual
Retirement Accounts (IRAs). KEOGH accounts are
insured separately to $250,000 in aggregate.
• Revocable Trust Accounts (including payable-on-death
or POD accounts) insurance amounts vary depending on
the amount in the account. Trusts receive $250,000 per
beneficiary (up to five beneficiaries) for up to $1,250,000
of insurance coverage. Trust accounts with more than
$1,250,000 and more than five beneficiaries may also be
fully insured, so check with your credit union to obtain the
maximum coverage possible. Also, a recent permanent
rule change widens the definition of a beneficiary to “a
natural person, or a charity, or other non-profit
organization.”
HOW CAN I DETERMINE IF MY
ACCOUNTS ARE FULLY COVERED?
Your credit union is ready to help you achieve maximum
NCUA insurance coverage for your particular situation. We
can show you how to maximize your coverage through
various types of ownership and other means. Another
helpful resource is the interactive NCUA Share Insurance
Estimator at http://webapps.ncua.gov/ins.
Need More Inforamtion
Start by going to the NCUA web site at www.ncua.gov to find publications as well as the Share Insurance Estimator, an interactive tool allowing you to get a summary of your NCUA coverage. Or, call 703-518-6300.
Give us a call at 281-479-6651 or 1-800-477-5328, contact us online, or stop by our branch location to apply for your Educational IRA Account today.
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