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Jeff's Blog 
General
News
Pennsylvanians - Happy Financial Eduation Month!...
Posted on 4/5/2010
Student Loans are the New Indentured Servitude...
Posted on 10/12/2009
Largest U.S. Bank throws Arbitration Out the Door...
Posted on 8/14/2009
National Arbitration Forum works against Consumers, NOT for the consumers...
Posted on 7/15/2009
Senator Chris Dodd: Credit Crisis...
Posted on 5/20/2009
Library
General
- Attorney Jeff Suher's sums up the meaning of the FCRA and how the FDCPA work together in a brief article.
- Complaint against the National Arbitration Form
- Pennsylvania Operation Short Change
- Read About New Consumer Protections Under the Credit Card Reform
- Debt Collectors are Creating New Tactics to Scare and Embarass Debtors
General
Does your credit card debt die with you, or can it come back to to haunt those you left behind???
Does your credit card debt die with you, or can it come back from the grave to haunt those you left behind? There isn’t a straight yes or no answer to this question. There are a number of factors, including where you live while obtaining the credit card.
Who the credit card belonged to is a factor. If there are no other account holders, the debt is yours alone. This could get tricky though, for instance, if there is an authorized user on the account. Usually if there is a mere authorized user (one that can charge, but is not liable for the bill), then he or she would NOT be responsible for the debt after a loved one passes away.
A spouse, child, or other family member cannot just inherit a debt without being a “cardholder”. The estate could also be responsible for paying the debt. If the estate goes through probate, the executor (or administrator) could determine in what order the bills should be paid. The remaining assets would then be distributed to the heirs. If there is not enough money left over, the credit card companies would just have to deal with it and write it off.
The question of who can inherit a debt can get very complicated. Many states allow a house to go to a spouse after the other spouses’ death without letting creditors intervene. Luckily, many states have laws to protect the family home from creditors. However, if you have lost a loved one and are receiving collection calls from debt collectors, call Jeff.
Jeff can help you determine if the debt is valid, if it is within the statute of limitations, and if you would in anyway be held liable for the debt.
1 Comments to "Does your credit card debt die with you, or can it come back to to haunt those you left behind???"
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I find it really strange that the banks are able to violate their own agreement by even trying to get someone else to pay if the contract says the individual cardholder has contractual liability for payment. They should be able to be sued for even transferring the account to outside collections and providing the information for the authorized user for the purpose of collection.
If this happened to me, I would sue them - or put up a good fight trying.
Interesting, I found this quote on another site from a Pennsylvania estate specialist - not sure at all what this means: "A person who uses a credit card may be liable for those charges on the card even though the person's name was not on the card or the account."
Sounds weird.