Husband debts

Melbajane

My husband unexpectedly passed a week ago, which has totally devastated me. I have been unable to register his death yet as the coroner wants a post mortem before issuing cause of death.

He did not have life insurance, and we only brought our house 8 months ago, so I im  now the sole owner still having to pay the mortgage (which I will struggle with on my own). He does not have any other money or any savings.

i understand that and debt (credit cards, catalogues etc) does not transfer to me if it’s solely in his name and I did not sign a guarantor. I think that’s correct (it’s all so overwhelming right now).

my question/concern is about finance agreements for products he is paying over 3 years (e.g. tv). These are in his name however they go out of our joint account. I am just wondering how that works? Whether I will have to take it on, whether they can be returned etc.

hope that makes sense. I’m overwhelmed with everything right now so may not be thinking clearly 

strawb_shortcake

My condolences on your loss, 

I can't offer any advice on the debts, but did your Husband have a pension or death in service with his job? 

Marcon

Melbajane said:

My husband unexpectedly passed a week ago, which has totally devastated me. I have been unable to register his death yet as the coroner wants a post mortem before issuing cause of death.

He did not have life insurance, and we only brought our house 8 months ago, so I im  now the sole owner still having to pay the mortgage (which I will struggle with on my own). He does not have any other money or any savings.

i understand that and debt (credit cards, catalogues etc) does not transfer to me if it’s solely in his name and I did not sign a guarantor. I think that’s correct (it’s all so overwhelming right now).

my question/concern is about finance agreements for products he is paying over 3 years (e.g. tv). These are in his name however they go out of our joint account. I am just wondering how that works? Whether I will have to take it on, whether they can be returned etc.

hope that makes sense. I’m overwhelmed with everything right now so may not be thinking clearly 

Your husband only died a week ago, so it's not at all surprising you are feeling overwhelmed. My sympathies to you.

Focus on the immediate requirements such as arranging the funeral, even if the date can't yet be finalised pending the post mortem - the planning process can start.

How is the house owned: joint tenants, or tenants in common? The solicitor who did the conveyancing will be able to tell you if you don't know - you probably don't feel like checking for yourself at the Land Registry while you are feeling as you must be right now.

The fact that a payment is going out of your joint account doesn't make you liable for debts incurred solely in his name. In due course you need to talk to the relevant parties, but that can wait. If you can find (and face) any paperwork to check, that would be helpful - obviously you don't want to be paying for anything for longer than you are required to do so.

Was he employed at the time of his death, and if so have you checked with the employer if they provided employees with any sort of death in service life cover? Did he have any private pension arrangements you might be able to access?

Marcon

This might help: https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment

pjs493

Im sorry for your loss. My husband died suddenly and unexpectedly in October so I know how you’re feeling right now. 

It might be worth checking with credit cards etc to see if he had any insurance to cover the debt in the event of his death. Check the mortgage too, although this might not apply as it was a joint mortgage. You may be able to transfer other things into your name eg I was able to do that with our internet provider which was bundled with my husband’s mobile phone. It will depend on individual companies though. 

As someone has mentioned above, did your husband have a pension or a death in service benefit through his employer? For example, my husband did and I was able to use money from the death in service benefit to pay off a mortgage he had in his sole name on a flat he bought years before we got married. I was surprised to learn that I (and our children who are still minors) would receive a percentage of his pension from they day after he died for life (in the case of the children it’s until they leave formal education). If your husband had such a pension, you may find that the pension income can help cover mortgage payments going forward. 

Don’t rush into dealing with things too much and have a trusted friend or relative help you if you think this would ease the burden for you while you’re in the early days. I didn’t inform banks etc until three or four weeks after my husband died because I just wasn’t in a place to think about it until then. 

Again, I’m so sorry for your loss. 

born_again

Sorry for your loss.

Many mortgage co's will want some form of life cover before allowing a mortgage. Are you sure that there is not one in place?

Brie

My condolences.  I have no idea how you must be feeling at this time.

Is there someone you trust that could help you at this time?  Do you have enough money to live on? Does your employer offer any bereavement support?  

If money is tight, particularly if you have to take time off work and your employer isn't very understanding I would suggest that you/someone rings all of the people you pay money to and explain what has happened and say that money isn't available currently.  Talking to a creditor now rather than a couple of months down the road will help.  

If when talking to anyone if they get pushy about payments simply say "the estate has no money".  It may be that there is equity in the house and you have a car or other assets that are of value but these appear to now be yours so have nothing to do with your husband.  "The estate has no money" is a blunt statement but may save you a lot of problems from creditors in the long run.

I wish you the best in working your way through all of this.  Do post back for more info when you need it.

Flugelhorn

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your husband - appreciate you are probably trying to keep busy by doing things like this but there is really no hurry - take your time and take the good advice of people on the forum here 

Keep_pedalling

You should stop all payments to all of his unsecured debts, the priority is your mortgage and other essential payments. It sounds like his estate is insolvent and if that is the case you don’t inherit his debt. No need to hurry with this but you then need to inform them of his death which should give you some breathing space. If it turns out that the estate is insolvent you then need to inform them that is is insolvent and that no one is administering the estate. 

Claude_and_Eustace

I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m not sure if anyone has mentioned it, but you can claim bereavement support payments which will help a little. I hope you find some other help, pensions and death in service payments are outside of the estate so worth chasing. 

Marcon

Keep_pedalling said:

You should stop all payments to all of his unsecured debts, the priority is your mortgage and other essential payments. It sounds like his estate is insolvent and if that is the case you don’t inherit his debt. No need to hurry with this but you then need to inform them of his death which should give you some breathing space. If it turns out that the estate is insolvent you then need to inform them that is is insolvent and that no one is administering the estate. 

...but do check first whether the house was held as tenants in common. Even if it was, the estate could still be insolvent depending on how much equity, if any, is in the house.