What should you do if estate creditors are trying to contact you, but you are not the estate executor? Siedentopf Law shares some advice in our latest video.
Hi, I’m attorney Sarah Siedentopf. I do estate planning and probate in Atlanta, Georgia. Someone has passed away and you are not the executor. What do you tell creditors who are contacting you? Or maybe no one is the executor because you’re not actually planning to probate the estate.
What do you tell creditors? You let creditors know who the executor is, if there is one or if the estate has not been opened, you let them know that. Now, if you are planning to open it later, you already know about this debt because they’ve contacted you, so you can’t pretend that you didn’t know and not pay it. But if you’re being hounded by creditors, you can let them know that the estate has not been set up. You are not in charge of it right now and to stop contacting you.
So if you are not the executor of the estate, give the relevant information to the creditor and then tell them to stop calling you. The only caveat to this is if for some reason you are jointly liable on the debt. In that case, you’re still liable. You have to talk to them about payments. But other than that, let them know and then let them know not to contact you. If you’ve got more questions about debts as it regards probate estates, I’d be happy to talk to you. Thanks.
For more on how to communicate with estate creditors if you ARE the estate executor, you can watch our video here. If you would like to set up an appointment, please schedule one online!
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