What happens if you die with credit card debts?

shadowspy24

Does someone else inherit the debt or is it cleared? I was just having a debate about it with someone and he seems to think that your next of kin will inherit the debt. But surely this can't be the case. Once you die your debt dies with you, Right or wrong?

lyndasharp

As far as I know, the debt should be paid out of the estate before the relatives inherit. However if you don't have anything then credit card companies will have to write the debt off, which is what they did after my Grandad died. He only owed a couple of hundred though, so they may not be so keen to write off larger sums?

Sammy_Girl

My understanding is that the debt is paid out of the deceased estate before any inheritance is passed on to next of kin. If there is no estate, then I believe that the debt cannot be passed on to someone else.

stebiz

Sammy_Girl wrote: »

My understanding is that the debt is paid out of the deceased estate before any inheritance is passed on to next of kin. If there is no estate, then I believe that the debt cannot be passed on to someone else.

Quite correct!

Stebiz