debt after death help

georgie1005

Hi my mother in law died recently with a huge amount of hidden debt.i dont even know if we have found it all.she has no money in her house that will be repossessed so no money to pay any debt.how can i stop these companies?? i have copies of the death certificate and need to write a letter but need help witht he template as many companies wll be getting it and i dont want to miss anything.....please help!!:(:(

DVardysShadow

Don't sweat. And don't take any pressure to pay anyone off.

MiL's assets will have to be sold off, repo done or whatever is required. Then the debts are paid off and then any surplus can be distributed to beneficiaries if there is a will, or to next of kin otherwise. If there is not enough money, the remaining debt dies with MiL.

Now what will happen is that as soon as the creditors learn of MiL's death, they will start harrassing you or the Executor to pay them off quickly. DON'T DO THIS. Basically, if they sense that there will not be enough money, they will all be out to be paid first. And if you pay any off early and the remaining creditors get a smaller share as a consequence, you could be liable to make up the difference!!!!

When you write, don't include a phone number, as they will probably take the opportunity to bend your ear.

Willow_K

Did she leave a will? Are there multiple next of kins? If so you need to apply for probate first anyway.

Whoever will be doing the probate should call all the creditors to inform them of the death and explaining that probate is being applied for followed up by a letter and a copy of the death certificate.

If there are multiple creditors it may be worth getting a few copies of the death certificate from the regsitrars as some may want to see an original and it is a pain waiting for it to be returned if a number of people want to see it.

If you are the one doing the probabte and you have a spare mobile phone, get a PAYG sim and use that number for creditors - that way they can leave you messages which you can choose to ignore and you can switch the phone off - but it is useful sometimes for them to have a way of contacting you by phone.

Also check the rules on repossession while an estate is in probate - it may not be possible if the repossession procedures have not already started.

Finally talk to the mortgage company - if a house is repossessed, it is often sold on by the mortgage company at a loss - for which they can then chase the owners for the difference at a later date. As there is no chance of any further money, they may be willing to hold off on repossession and let you sell the house for market value rather than repossessing - that way they get all of their money (assuming no negative equity) and it will also give you more money to pay off other creditors.

Probate is a long process, but quite simple when you get into it.

Oh and whoever is doing the probate will need to set up a seperate probate bank account - your own bank should be able to do this. If there is insurance payouts or gas refunds etc, they may only make the cheque out to the estate so the only way to cash it is through a probate account.

Good Luck

RAS

georgie1005 wrote: »

Hi my mother in law died recently with a huge amount of hidden debt.i dont even know if we have found it all.she has no money in her house that will be repossessed so no money to pay any debt.how can i stop these companies?? i have copies of the death certificate and need to write a letter but need help witht he template as many companies wll be getting it and i dont want to miss anything.....please help!!:(:(

Hi

is there a will? Who is the executor? if not, who is going to administer the estate?


That person (you or otherwise) needs to write to the creditors and advise that MIL has died and that the creditors will be paid when the house is sold.

Also talk to the mortgage company and ask for a payment holiday until the sale is sorted out. They will get there whack when it is sold.
Get a valuation ASAP.

ladybez

If your late MIL lived alone, please also remember to contact the local council regarding Council Tax and the utility co's to stop[ charges for water, gas and electric.