Deceased Unsecured Debt

KatieNX

Hi all. I am hoping I can get some advice please.

My mother was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in August. She defied the odds of 3 months and we are hoping to get past Christmas.

She has 14k unsecured debt. Overdraft > Mailing Order (Very and Littlewoods) > Credit Card > Argos card.

She doesn't have the money to clear the debt before she passes. I don't have that sort of money immediately but if the creditors can arrange a payment plan with me then I can clear the debt on the same terms she is on now.

I do not want them to visiting our address for collections. It is going to be hard enough with the funeral etc. and do not need the added stress.

What are my rights and options for this? Anything that could give me some guidance would be most appreciated.

Thank you.

Tigsteroonie

You will not inherit the debts (unless you are a co-signature). If she has insufficient estate to pay the debts, the debts will be cancelled.

Someone will be along shortly with the legalese on this!

KatieNX

Tigsteroonie wrote: »

You will not inherit the debts (unless you are a co-signature). If she has insufficient estate to pay the debts, the debts will be cancelled.

Someone will be along shortly with the legalese on this!

I feel bad for them though. They did borrow the money in good faith and we would pay them back straight away if we could. She hasn't taken out any credit since the diagnosis for obvious reasons but she doesn't want to pass away thinking her name was tarnished from unpaid debts.

elsien

The funeral costs come from her estate. If there is one.
Anything left over goes towards the debts. If there's nothing left over the creditors will have to go whistle unless it is a joint debt with someone else or there is a guarantor.
If it's not in your name it's not your problem.

ETA - just seen your last post. Your family have enough to worry about - it's not been done on purpose. Sometimes bad things just happen. Your mum's name certainly won't be tarnished and the companies business model allows for a proportion of debts not ton related paid for whatever reason.
Just make the most of the time you have left without stressing about it.

Tigsteroonie

KatieNX wrote: »

I feel bad for them though. They did borrow the money in good faith and we would pay them back straight away if we could. She hasn't taken out any credit since the diagnosis for obvious reasons but she doesn't want to pass away thinking her name was tarnished from unpaid debts.

She doesn't need to feel any shame at all. It is very unfortunate that she has fallen ill (it's not as though she's done it deliberately ), and won't be able to finish her commitments to the companies. But this can happen, it's a risk they take when they extend credit.

Ergates

KatieNX wrote: »

I feel bad for them though. They did borrow the money in good faith and we would pay them back straight away if we could. She hasn't taken out any credit since the diagnosis for obvious reasons but she doesn't want to pass away thinking her name was tarnished from unpaid debts.

No need to feel bad for them - this is part of their business model. When the lend money to people the *know* they won't always get it back. They took a risk - hoping to make a profit - this time it didn't work out for them. Most of the time it does work out for them - they're fine, don't worry about them.

CakeCrusader

I'm really sorry to read about your mum, Katie. As others have said, please try not to worry. Do you know if your mum has a will? There's never a good time, but it will let you know her wishes.



There's a way to pay the debts for someone who has passed away. The funeral costs always come first, and any debts (credit cards etc) come out of the estate. If there's no house or funds left, then it gets written off. As others have said, the credit card companies etc all account for this, so please don't worry. It's more important that you spend the time with your mum and not worrying about this. Macmillan's really great if you need some advice or support, they won't mind at all if you call them for a chat; https://www.macmillan.org.uk/information-and-support

AnotherJoe

KatieNX wrote: »

Hi all. I am hoping I can get some advice please.

My mother was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in August. She defied the odds of 3 months and we are hoping to get past Christmas.

She has 14k unsecured debt. Overdraft > Mailing Order (Very and Littlewoods) > Credit Card > Argos card.

She doesn't have the money to clear the debt before she passes. I don't have that sort of money immediately but if the creditors can arrange a payment plan with me then I can clear the debt on the same terms she is on now.

I do not want them to visiting our address for collections. It is going to be hard enough with the funeral etc. and do not need the added stress.

What are my rights and options for this? Anything that could give me some guidance would be most appreciated.

Thank you.

Nooooo !



The debt dies with her if she has no other cash or property.


Don't feel bad for them. First, they are a faceless corporation that has no "feelings" and second,risks and thus losses like this are factored into their business plan.

If you really want to keep the stress down until afterwards, pay enough money into her bank account to allow it to supply the payments she is currently making. Afterwards, write a short letter to the organization stating that she has died and there is no money in the estate. Put a copy of the death certificate in the letter.

Good luck with your mum I hope it goes as well as it can in the circumstances.

KatieNX

I phoned Argos because a friend said they were the hardest to deal with and I was right. The man on the phone was passive aggressive and told me to get the executor (assume that means person who spreads assets - my brother) to call them when she "dies" and will discuss her account with them only and will need a death certificate as well.

eskbanker

KatieNX wrote: »

I phoned Argos because a friend said they were the hardest to deal with and I was right. The man on the phone was passive aggressive and told me to get the executor (assume that means person who spreads assets - my brother) to call them when she "dies" and will discuss her account with them only and will need a death certificate as well.

I really wouldn't put yourself through this, especially as it's unnecessary - make the most of the time you have left together and then after the event the executor of the will is responsible for notifying the creditors.

As mentioned further upthread, any debts should be settled by the estate (if applicable) rather than anyone else feeling the need to dip into their own money, but there isn't any point in discussing this with creditors at this stage anyway. Argos are correct that they'll only deal with the account holder at this stage (unless anyone has power of attorney), and then the executor later on, so with all due respect, it really isn't your battle to fight, so why put yourself through something stressful for no apparent reason?

Silvertabby

My sympathies to you all.

As others have said, don't worry about these debts. You have more important things to do now.

If I may offer a word of advice, don't leave anything unsaid. I was told to do this when my mum was very ill, and it is still a comfort to know that I'd told her just how much I loved her before she died.

As for your mum's accounts, all of these companies charge daft rates of interest for this very reason - to cover their 'losses' when customers are unable to make full payments. Assuming that your mum will leave no assets, or just enough to cover her funeral expenses, then there will be no further liability to these companies. Your mum won't be welching on her debts, if that is what is worrying her now - she's already covered by her legal contracts with them.