my mom

[jmangum3]

regarding my mom..
she is 76, in poor health.....trying to put things in order..

am I legally responsible for her debts upon her death? Is this a moral issue or a required law? how are debts taken care of upon her death?

she has a life insurance policy for burial, 30,000.00 and a little money in the bank.

she has two credit cards in her name, both with large balances. am i, the beneficiary, obligated to pay these credit cards off?

my name is on her checking account as "joint account party"

thank you for your help

 

[advisor10]

2-19-2002

DEAR JMANGUM:

Don't worry--you (or anyone else) can not be held responsible for your mother's debts. If there is not enough money left in her estate to pay them, they will have to remain unpaid, and the credit card companies and other creditors will eventually write the amounts off as bad debts.

Your posting is a little bit confusing: are you saying that the lif insurance policy for burial is $30,000, or is the life insurance policy and the $30,000 two separate items?

Try to find out who is the beneficiary named on the burial insurance policy--if you are the beneficiary, the money goes directly to you to spend any way you want to, but hopefully you would use most of it to pay the funeral bill first. If the funeral home is named as the beneficiary, they might try to hike the funeral bill up in order to claim most of the money, so she should consider, if possible, getting another policy, or keeping things as they are if she has already paid too many premiums into it.

With the checking account, at her death you would be able to ask the bank to issue you a check for whatever amount is left in there, under the concept of joint tenancy with rights of survivorship.

SINCERELY,

advisor