Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Colorado
credit card bills
My mother in law died. She did not own any house,property or car. Her only income was social security. She was of sound mind to the end and did not have anyone acting as legal guardian. Her oldest son had power of attorney only for signing checks and seeing that her bills got paid. There was no money left after paying her nursing home bills and funeral expenses to pay off her credit cards. Are her relatives responsible for her credit cards debits?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: credit card bills
No, they are not responsible, unless someone signed as a joint card holder with her. These companies will continue to send out bills, sometimes even change the debtor name to "Estate of" but the bottom line is they have a creditor claim against an estate that does not exist. Creditors can petition to have an estate opened, but I've never seen it done without a very significant debt and some assets to satisfy it - not worth the time or money. Family can either ignore the bills or send a letter to the companies telling them that there is no estate or assets from which to satisfy the claim.
Re: credit card bills
Her relatives are not personally responsible for her credit card debt unless they have agreed to be responsible.
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