What happens to a car loan or lease when the owner dies?

Generally, nobody gets thrown a car loan they didn’t sign up for — even if you’re named as the beneficiary in the will. But if you cosigned for the car, you’ll be responsible for making repayments. If you don’t assume a loan you’re responsible for, you’ll lose the car and your credit score could be hurt.

4 things that happen to a car loan when the owner dies

In most cases, your relative’s car loan goes through the following 4 stages after they die.

1. It gets combined with other assets and debts in the estate.

After anyone dies, all of their assets and debts are combined into what is called their estate. The estate represents the deceased’s net worth after death.

2. It goes into probate.

Once the estate is established, the deceased’s assets go through a legal process called probate. Probate involves distributing the assets and paying off debts that the deceased left behind.

If the deceased had an estate plan, it should name an executor — someone who handles paying off their debts and distributing assets according to their will. Otherwise, a probate court names an administrator who is responsible for handling the probate process. Usually, the administrator is a spouse, common-law partner or the next of kin.

3. The lender collects payment from the estate.

During this stage, there are 3 scenarios that can happen:

• Full repayment. If there’s no cosigner or beneficiary taking over the car loan, the lender can collect full repayment from the estate.
• Monthly repayments. If someone’s taking over the debt, the lender will continue to collect monthly repayments from the estate before the debt is handed over. Or, a cosigner will continue to make repayments.
• Repossession. If the estate can’t cover the full cost of the car loan and nobody plans on taking over the car loan, the lender repossesses the car and sells it to cover the loss. It’ll return any remaining funds to the estate.

4. The responsible party covers any remaining cost.

After the probate process is over, anyone who was named as responsible for paying off the loan takes over repayments. If the estate covers the debt or the car is repossessed, then nobody needs to assume the loan.

Who’s responsible for paying off the loan?

How the loan gets paid can vary depending on factors like whether the owner had a cosigner, a life insurance policy or a beneficiary.

If they had a cosigner or co-applicant …

Anyone with their name on the loan is responsible for covering repayments. This includes cosigners, co-borrowers and joint applicants. In fact, there’s no need for probate to transfer the debt since the loan is already under your name. This is true even if you don’t inherit the car.

If you don’t make repayments, the lender can repossess the car and even sue you for repayment if the sale doesn’t cover the full cost.

If they had credit insurance …

Credit insurance is an exception to the cosigner rule. If the owner bought credit life insurance on their car loan, then the insurance company is responsible for covering the debt — even if they had a cosigner or surviving spouse.

If they named a beneficiary…

Anyone who inherits an unpaid car loan has the option to take on repayments if they want to assume the loan. Otherwise, the lender can repossess the car.

Who is most likely to be researching what happens to a car loan when you die?

Finder data suggests that women aged 45-54 are most likely to be researching this topic.

How do I transfer ownership after the car owner’s death?

Generally, you need to follow these steps to make sure the car loan is fully transferred to your name.

1. Send the lender their death certificate. Make sure the lender is aware the owner died as soon as you can to avoid any delinquencies or defaults on the loan.
2. Make sure payments are covered. Also reach out to the lender to make sure someone is covering the repayments — be it the estate or cosigner. Otherwise, the lender might try to repossess the car.
3. Transfer the title. Each province and territory has it own rules for title transferring the title of a car if the owner dies. Reach out to your provincial/territorial ministry of transportation to find out what you need to do.
4. Pay registration fees and taxes. You’ll also need to register the car in your name and pay the same taxes your province or territory requires after any vehicle is sold.
5. Sign up for car insurance. Sign up for the legally required car insurance in your province or territory for your new vehicle.
6. Refinance or pay off the loan. If you think you can get a better deal, consider refinancing with a different lender to help you save on interest. If not, pay it off according to the current rates and terms.

In some cases, it might not be so straightforward. You might want to consider hiring a probate attorney to help you navigate the process of transferring the loan if you’re struggling on your own.

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What can I do if I can’t afford the loan?

Unless you’re a cosigner, you likely don’t need to take over the loan. Beneficiaries can’t be forced to assume a loan they didn’t cosign. In that case, the lender will repossess the car and sell it to cover its losses.

But if the car is worth more than the loan balance, consider selling it yourself and using the funds to pay off the loan. That way, you could make a profit.

What happens to a car lease when someone dies in Canada?

Similar to what could happen with a car loan after someone dies, you’ll generally have a few options for how to handle a car lease if the vehicle’s lessee dies. If there was a cosigner, than the lease would transfer to the cosigner’s name, and the cosigner would become responsible for making payments on the lease.

If there is no cosigner on the lease, the deceased’s estate will be responsible for making the remaining payments until the terms of the lease are complete. Some dealerships may terminate the lease early, with or without a fee, once they’re notified of the lessee’s death. But the dealership may not be obligated to do that depending on the terms of the lease agreement.

If there isn’t enough money in the estate to cover the remining lease payments, the vehicle would likely be repossessed, and then sold or leased by the dealership to someone else. If there was still any outstanding amount owed on the lease that wasn’t covered from selling or releasing the vehicle, the estate will be responsible for paying the difference. If there is no money left in the estate to pay on the vehicle, the lease is simply cancelled.

Of course, your specific circumstances may be different from the examples given here, and the inheritance laws may vary based on where you live in Canada. The best approach is to discuss your specific situation with an estate lawyer.

Bottom line

You likely won’t have to pay off your relative’s car loan if you didn’t cosign it. But if you inherit a car that’s not fully paid for, you’ll need to assume the loan to keep it. You can learn more about how it all works with our guide to car loans.

Frequently asked questions

• What happens to a car lease after you die?

  It depends on the lease. If the lease has a cosigner, the cosigner would be responsible for keeping up lease payments. Otherwise, it’s generally the responsibility of the lessee’s estate.

• Are any debts forgiven at death?

  Generally, debts must be written if the balance can’t be repaid from selling the deceased person’s assets or by someone else taking over repayment. The loan contract should outline what happens if the borrower dies.

  Unsecured debts (for example, credit card balances and some types of personal loans) may be repayable from the estate’s value. However, secured debts (mortgages, auto title loans etc.) will usually take precedence, because the lender was given the right to take possession of the assets used to secure the debt should the borrower fail to repay.

• What happens to an auto title loan after you die?

  An auto title loan is treated like any other type of debt. Generally, title loans don’t have cosigners. But if you did cosign the car loan, you’ll be responsible for paying it back.