If unemployment benefits are due and payable at the time of an applicant's death, those benefits must, upon application, be paid to the personal representative of the estate of the deceased. In the event that no personal representative is appointed, the unemployment benefits must, upon application be paid in the following order: (1) the surviving spouse, (2) the surviving child or children, or (3) the surviving parent or parents.
An individual seeking payment must complete an application prescribed by the commissioner and the payment of unemployment benefits discharges the obligations to the applicant and no other individual may claim or assert any right to those unemployment benefits.