Credit Card Debt after death

directdebiter

Apologies if this has been done before..my close relative has passed away and left considerable credit card debt (plus other debt). He had no cash or savings to pay back the debt but the only asset maybe is a joint name on the deeds of the house which his elderly wife is living in.

- Is there any advice in dealing with the credit card companies to get the debt wiped?

- Can the credit card companies come after his house? as this would be very worrying

THANKS for any advice.

bris

The house is safe as long as they are not "tenants in common".


They can not come after the house, they can only make a claim on the deceased's estate, if there is nothing then they have no claim.


Who is the executor ? Advise the executor to seek professional help if there is any doubt as to the way the home is owned.

directdebiter

Thanks very much Bris. There is no will and no debts so there will be no executor I assume. Doesnt the debt pass to any assets he may have i.e the house if his name is on the deeds? THANKS

System

directdebiter wrote: »

Thanks very much Bris. There is no will and no debts so there will be no executor I assume. Doesnt the debt pass to any assets he may have i.e the house if his name is on the deeds? THANKS

If he is joint tenant then his wife will take full ownership of the house and it does not form any part of his estate.

Creditors can not claim 50% of the house to cover debts in this case. Although the Administration of Insolvent Estates of Deceased Persons Order 1986 gives them rights to claim back money that may have been given previously as gifts and other such disbursements the CoA case below puts the house that is held as joint tenants completely out of their reach

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/law-report-joint-tenancy-is-not-affected-re-palmer-a-deceased-debtor-court-of-appeal-lord-justice-1368178.html

bris

directdebiter wrote: »

Thanks very much Bris. There is no will and no debts so there will be no executor I assume. Doesnt the debt pass to any assets he may have i.e the house if his name is on the deeds? THANKS

As above, no the house does not form part of his estate.

chattychappy

Some of the answers here are misleading.

It is true that the house does not form part of the estate - it passes by survivorship. Re Palmer confirms that, but that was a 1991 case.

However the Insolvency Act 1986 was amended in 2001 to deal with this situation, creating S421A which DOES allow creditors to make a claim on the surviving tenant where property was held as joint tenants. NOTE, it is still the case that the property passes outside of the estate, but this gives creditors the chance to claim. It is not automatic and the courts have to approve an order first. I doubt whether it is used in the case of normal credit card debts.

The Independent article is dated 2011 but looks like it was written before the law was changed. It is still correct - the property does not form part of the estate. But it doesn't refer to S421A which was parliament's "remedy" to perceived injustice to creditors.

This has been discussed before: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=32534657&postcount=13

[The link within my post on the earlier thread has been moved. It is now at: https://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/casehelpmanual/D/DeceasedInsolvents.htm, paragraph 7]

redpete

directdebiter wrote: »

Thanks very much Bris. There is no will and no debts so there will be no executor I assume.

'no debts' apart from the credit card?

McKneff

It says in the first post that there are cc debts plus other debts.

directdebiter

redpete wrote: »

'no debts' apart from the credit card?

sorry meant no assets