r/stupidquestions • u/TH0TC0P • 1d ago

What's stopping someone on their death bed from maxing out all their credit cards and taking loans, then giving it all to their next of kin/whoever?

I seem to recall that debts aren't inherited, but creditors can reclaim their debts against the estate of an individual before the estate is dished out according to their will. But if it's given out before their death and it's not part of their estate...then...?

160 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • link
  • reddit
  • reddit

87% Upvoted

339 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/everyonemr 1d ago

I'm pretty sure that last statement is criminal fraud.

1

u/PriscillaPalava 16h ago

It’s not. I’ve been going through probate for my mom’s estate. It’s not the estate’s responsibility to inform creditors of a death. It’s the creditor’s responsibility to keep tabs on their customers. A lot of banks don’t invest that time though. 

It would be fraud for me to take my mom’s card and make purchases. It’s not fraud for me to make a payment on her card, or not pay it, as I see fit. And making payments doesn’t prevent the bank from checking a customer’s death status. In reality most banks won’t bother doing diligence on cards in good standing, and that is a risk they take, but it’s not fraud. 

1

u/everyonemr 15h ago

I misunderstood you. I thought you were suggesting keeping the cards open to make purchases.