Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania
estate -unsecured debt
my mother died a year ago - we have taken care of everything but now a stolen credit card from 7 years ago through a collection agency is asking for payment- I know it is not a valid account - they have provided no verification of signiture or debt and it has been over 7 years do we have to pay it
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: estate -unsecured debt
Generally, one is not liable for the debts of another. So it is unlikely that anyone but your mother (who is now deceased) would have to pay the debt. However, if there is an estate in probate with funds the credit card company may wish to pursue that during the probate process.
If there are funds in your mother's estate and you want to dispute that debt advise the collection agency of such and work through their and the credit card company's dispute process first.
If you do not have time to do this I or another attorney would be happy to dispute this matter for you, for a fee of course, but if you have time this is something you can do on your own with no legal expertise.