My husband died...the car lease/loan is in his name

Submitted by onebeaner t3_126vofj in personalfinance

This is the car that I drive. My husband surprised me with it in the fall; I was thrilled. My husband passed away 2 weeks ago and I'm not sure what to do. The funeral home just let me know they have the death certificates. The lease is through Kia so I will be notifying them. I've been making automatic monthly payments on the car. What is the policy here? Will they demand the car back since none of the paperwork is in my name. I feel like I'm in a fog and am overwhelmed. TIA for any help.

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hems86 t1_jeb3nor wrote

When your husband died, his estate inherits the lease. I’m guessing you will solely inherit his estate (unless he left assets to other via a will). The estate will have to settle any debts or maintain them.

So, Kia will likely have you sign paperwork to assume the lease. Since you are the executor of the estate, the decision is yours. You can keep the lease and continue payments or you can surrender the car and break the lease. If you break the lease, you will have to pay any fees or depreciation to Kia as per the lease agreement.

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micha8st t1_jeb8p07 wrote

I'm so sorry for your loss.

About 10 years ago I lost my grandmother. While visiting for the funeral, I broke state law by driving her car -- as did my aunt. It turns out that in that state, only the spouse can legally drive the car until it's retitled.

Who knows about your state. I suggest asking the funeral home people when you pick up the death certificates. Then verify what they tell you before you go any further.

You want to do whatever is legal...but remember that the dealership and Kia don't want some "consumer affairs" reporter broadcasting on TV how Kia is bullying some poor widow.

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onebeaner OP t1_jebc1o7 wrote

That's true! lol I ended up calling Kia finance b/c I was so nervous. It seems easy enough to transfer payments. Hopefully.

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FourWayFork t1_jeb3phy wrote

Look at your loan agreement. That should say whether the loan is due immediately on the death of the borrower or what the terms are.

(Personally, I'm not sure how legal it is, but if I had an interest rate that I like, I would "forget" to notify anyone and would just keep making payments.)

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onebeaner OP t1_jeb46h5 wrote

My fear is that it would be some kind of fraud, especially if there was an accident.

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FourWayFork t1_jeb58df wrote

You're not signing his name. As you said, he setup auto-pay. You're simply not touching something he did.

And what the bank (or, in this case, Kia's financial services) cares about more than anything is getting their money. If they call the loan, it's because they don't feel like they will get their money if you keep the car. But if they are getting their money, they won't care.

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onebeaner OP t1_jebai0w wrote

I just called Kia Finance and hopefully this won't be long and drawn out. You're right: they just want their money. I need to send them a copy of the death certificate,, and a written request to continue payments. The rep told me that the turn around is usually around 2 weeks. So, hopefully, one less thing to worry about.

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