After Death    
Credit Card Debt Lives On     
     
   When your family member dies - with more debts than assets to pay them - the inheritor will inherit the debt. Debts are paid before beneficiaries receive any distributions. 

   The estate pays credit card balances and other debts, which is routine when the deceased left enough assets or savings. If you are a joint cardholder, or have co-signed with your loved one, you're on the hook even if you never made purchases.

What to do when a cardholder dies   
   Someone should promptly notify financial institutions and close any credit card accounts. These tasks are easily forgotten in the wake of a family death.

   Identity thieves troll obituaries and online records looking for deceased persons to impersonate, and possibly create new accounts, or find ways to steal from existing accounts.

   Bankrate.com suggests: 

1. Organize financial accounts 
2. Prevent further credit card use 
3. Get multiple copies of the death certificate 
4. Notify credit card companies and Social Security if necessary 
5. Issue payments to creditors 
6. Contact the three credit bureaus - Experian, Equifax and TransUnion   

   If needed, consult an estate attorney.

   And a word for all of us: We're not guaranteed tomorrow. Keep records of all your own accounts, cards, phone numbers, addresses, names of institutions etc. and make sure whoever is left with the above tasks knows exactly where to find all this, if they don't already have a copy.

   Assure that their last memory of you isn't their preventable frustration.

       Jimmy