As a recently bereaved person, your emotional state would be in utter turmoil. However, there are certain hard tasks that will need your attention. There are certain financial decisions you will have to take after the loss of a loved one. First of all, you will need to inform the credit bureaus about the death of your close relation. After you report the death, the credit agencies will ensure that no new credit is issued to the accounts of the deceased. The best way to notify the credit agency is by applying for a “deceased-do not issue credit” flag, which is placed on the file of the deceased. Once this flag is placed, the credit agencies will not issue any credit under the name of the deceased.
In addition to the request, you will be required to provide the following information.
- A certified copy of the death certificate with a raised stamp
- Copies of papers that prove you are the executor
- Full name and birth date of the deceased
- Recent address and social security number of the deceased
- Date of death of the deceased
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If you are the executor, you can also ask for a copy of the credit report of the deceased in order to get a clear idea of the balance and the accounts. Until you do look at the report, you will not be able to understand where and how much amount is outstanding under the name of the deceased. After you inform the bureau, they will immediately freeze the account and no security freeze will be required. The best step is to notify the credit bureaus directly since the Social Security Administration might not notify them. Even if the SSA does send notifications to the credit bureaus, it could take months. If the credit report of the deceased shows that there are creditors, you will need to contact them and inform them about the death.
Another important thing to know is that you cannot close joint accounts of the deceased person, if the other account holder is still alive. If you do so, there will be a negative impact on the credit of the survivor. You can pay off the outstanding in the joint account and then ask for the closure of the account from the bank.
After you inform the credit bureaus, you will have to wait for a couple of weeks until the freeze is implemented. You can then get the credit report from the bureau and check whether the credit freeze is in place or not. If you do not take these steps on time, there could be higher chances of a credit freeze, which can cause more trouble for you. You can also get your hands on the credit report before putting forward an application so that you know what to check after the application for credit freeze has been made. Have frequent communications with the bureaus to ensure that the action for credit freeze is taken at the earliest and there is no delay in the same.
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