Things You Need to Know after a Loved One Dies

After funerals at funeral homes in Tallahassee, FL, you and your family will be engulfed in the grief and sorrow that comes after someone you love has died. In those immediate days following a loved one’s death, the focus will be on them: their memory, the life they lived, the void their death has left in your lives.

However, soon after the death of a loved one, the reality of practical matters such as settling their estate and knowing who has legal rights regarding them and their affairs sets in. And it is in this time that confusion can sometimes abound. Here is what you need to know.

Any powers of attorney that were in effect before you loved one died are no longer valid. This includes, obviously, medical powers of attorney, but perhaps not as obviously, durable powers of attorney. A durable power of attorney appoints someone to handle legal and financial matters for another person who is living, but is unable to handle those matters themselves.

Once the person dies, the durable power of attorney ends. The only person authorized to handle legal and financial matters for the estate of your deceased loved one is the person whom they named as the executor in their will or the trustee in their revocable trust (this may be the same person who had durable power of attorney while your loved one was alive, but it sometimes is not).

If your loved one died without a will, then the only person who will be authorized to handle legal and financial matters of their estate is the person whom the court appoints as the executor of the estate.

After your loved one dies, it’s important that all their assets are protected. The time after your loved one dies will be emotionally chaotic and it will leave you and your family vulnerable to being taken advantage of – sometimes by family members themselves – by people who want to personally benefit from the assets your loved one left.

Before the estate is opened – this is the legal term for the beginning of settling your loved one’s estate – all assets should be protected from anyone taking them or distributing them. Once the estate is opened (the instructions in a will or revocable trust initiate this), then only the person who is named as executor or trustee is legally authorized to take or distribute assets, and only in accordance with your deceased loved one’s instructions.

Debts and taxes follow the estate of your loved one. Therefore, it is important that debts be paid from the estate and taxes filed on behalf of the estate (for the tax year in which your loved one dies, if there is taxable income).

However, these financial liabilities of the estate do not become financial responsibilities for heirs, beneficiaries, other family members, or friends. If there are not enough financial assets in the estate to satisfy these debts and obligations, then so be it. No one else is obligated or required to take them on and pay them.

Make sure to notify everyone of your loved one’s death. This includes credit card companies, government agencies, cell phone carriers, utility companies, and other entities that need to know. When you contact these companies, you can either close the accounts, such as credit cards and cell phone carriers (unless you are jointly named on them), or have them put in your name only so that the estate doesn’t accrue additional debt.

If you want to learn about funerals at funeral homes in Tallahassee, FL, our compassionate and experienced staff at Lifesong Funerals & Cremations can help. You can come by our funeral home at 20 S. Duval St., Quincy, FL 32351, or you can contact us today at (850) 627-1111.