ET OnlineCan a surviving joint bank locker holder claim full ownership after the co-holder’s death? No, here’s why (AI generated representative image)
A daughter from Kanayannur Taluk, Ernakulam, Kerala, lost her claim to more than 180 sovereigns of gold ornaments stored in a bank locker that she jointly held with her deceased mother. She lost the gold because her mother had executed a Will prior to depositing the gold in their joint bank locker, bequeathing the gold to another family member.
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So, when this other family member came forward to claim this gold after her mother’s death, she (the daughter) disputed the claim and argued that as per the bank locker agreement’s ‘either or survivor’ clause, she can get access to this gold. Subsequently, the dispute reached the High Court of Kerala, where she lost the case.
On February 2, 2026, the High Court of Kerala ruled that assets deposited/kept in a bank locker can be bequeathed by one of the account holders through a Will in favour of a third party, without the need for consent from the joint account holder, even if the locker agreement includes an ‘either or survivor’ clause. This is because a bank locker’s survivorship agreement can’t supersede a registered Will. With this reasoning, she lost the gold.
Read below to find out what this judgement means for you.
Does one joint bank locker holder get absolute ownership of all contents once the other dies?
Nagpal says: “No. A surviving locker holder cannot automatically claim absolute ownership of all locker contents.”
According to Nagpal, the surviving holder may be permitted to access the locker depending on the mandate (e.g., ‘either or survivor’), but the contents remain subject to:
- The legal heirs of the deceased, and
- Any valid Will executed by the deceased. If a dispute arises, ownership must be established through evidence of title or succession proceedings.
Does survivorship in locker agreements override a valid Will executed by one of the holders?
Nagpal says that a Will prevails over the locker survivorship agreement when determining ownership of the assets. The survivorship clause only allows the bank to permit access to the locker without requiring succession certificates immediately. It does not alter the legal distribution of the assets contained in the locker.
Nagpal says: “If a valid Will specifies who should inherit the contents, those directions override the survivorship arrangement.”
Can a joint locker holder bequeath the contents through a Will without the consent of the co-holder?
According to Nagpal, it is possible but only to the extent that those assets actually belong to that person. A locker holder may bequeath through a Will:
- Jewellery
- Documents
- Cash
- Other valuables, provided those items are owned by that individual.
Nagpal says: “However, the person cannot bequeath property that belongs to the co-holder. If the contents are jointly owned or ownership is unclear, disputes may arise and may require judicial determination.”
Does the law treat joint FDs differently from joint lockers in applying survivorship principles (either or survivor)?
Abhishek Bagga, Principal Associate, King Stubb & Kasiva, told ET Wealth Online that the principle of ‘either or survivor’ does not operate identically in the context of joint fixed deposits (FDs) and joint bank lockers.
According to Bagga, a joint FD represents a monetary deposit constituting a debt owed by the bank to the account holders, and the ‘either or survivor’ clause primarily facilitates payment to the surviving holder for operational convenience and for the valid discharge of the bank’s liability.
In contrast, a bank locker arrangement is essentially a facility for the safe custody of valuables, where the bank merely provides the locker on hire and does not assume ownership or dominion over the contents stored inside.
Bagga says: “Accordingly, access granted to the surviving locker holder does not give rise to any presumption of ownership over the articles stored in the locker, and such articles remain subject to proof of title and to testamentary or intestate succession.”
Does an ‘either or survivor’ clause in a joint FD create a right of survivorship in ownership, or does it merely confer a right of payment by the bank?
According to Bagga, the “either or survivor” clause governs the operational relationship between the bank and the joint account holders and enables the bank to honour payment to either holder during their lifetime or to the surviving holder upon the death of one holder, thereby securing a valid discharge of the bank’s liability.
However, such a clause does not create a right of survivorship in the proprietary sense, nor does it determine the beneficial ownership of the assets deposited or stored.
Bagga says: “The underlying deposit or articles remain subject to proof of ownership and the applicable law of succession, and the clause merely regulates the manner in which the bank may release or permit access to the assets.”
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