Credit Card Debt on a family death

How was the property owned? Joint tenants or tenants in common.

Did she have any other assets, cash in the bank (not a joint account) or ISAs etc.

Mauricethelemur wrote: »

Hi

I wonder if anyone can help me.

My girlfriend mother died the other week and we found out she owes 50k in credit card debts and no life insurance.

She had a property with her husband and I wonder if he is now liable for her debt even though the credit cards were in her name.

Can someone help me as my girlfriend is worried her dad will be saddled with this debt.

Who is taking charge of your girlfriend's mother's estate? Did she have a will?

Basically, that 50k credit card debt is now owed by the estate. So the question is, are there any assets in the estate to meet that liability?

You say "she had a property with her husband". The question "How was the property owned? Joint tenants or tenants in common" relates to the nature of this joint ownership.

https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership

If the property was owned as tenants in common, then the mother's share will form part of the estate. If that's the only asset, either the house will have to be sold to pay the credit card debt or the husband will have to pay it.

If, as is more common, the property was owned as joint tenants, the husband automatically inherits his wife's share, and so it does not form part of the estate. Therefore if all there is in the estate is 50k of credit card debt, it would be an insolvent estate, and whoever is in charge needs to write to the CC companies to tell them so, and they can go whistle.

However there is a legal procedure, whereby any one of these CC companies could apply to court to make the husband pay. I have no idea whether they would or not.