Am I Liable for My Husband's Debts?
by: Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota-Duluth
A legal question and answer column for seniors.
DEAR SENIORS LEGAL LINE:
My husband recently died, leaving behind an unpaid credit card debt. He used the credit card for gambling, which I always discouraged. Now I am getting telephone calls from a collection agency telling me that I am responsible for my husband's credit card debt. My name was not on the card, and I never used it. I live on my small Social Security Retirement benefit and can't afford to pay this gambling debt. What can I do?
Signed, Edith
DEAR EDITH:
First I want to express my condolences on the loss of your husband. It is difficult enough dealing with the death of a family member without having to deal with collection agencies as well. Hopefully this answer will provide you with some hope.
In Minnesota, a spouse is not liable to a creditor for the debts of the other spouse, unless the debt was incurred for necessary medical services furnished to either spouse, and/or necessary household articles and supplies furnished to and used by the family. Minn. Stat. ยง 519.05(a). Furthermore, if the debt was for necessary medical services or household supplies, a spouse still would only be responsible if both spouses were living together at the time the debt was incurred. In your situation, I assume you and your husband were living together when your husband used the credit cards for gambling. However, in my opinion, you are not liable because gambling is neither a necessary medical service nor a household article or supply.
When a client calls my office with this sort of problem, I typically contact the collection agency on the client's behalf to inform them of this Statute. Sometimes creditors and their agents from other states are not familiar with Minnesota law. In the case of collection agencies, I typically also demand that the collection agency cease communication with my client. You can do this as well, by writing to the collection agency. The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act states that if you write to a collection agency and tell them to stop contacting you, they must do so, except in very narrow circumstances such as telling you that they are stopping collection efforts or to notify you of what legal remedies they intend to pursue. 15 USC 1692c.
If you are disputing the debt, be sure to ask for a verification of the debt from the collection agency. They must give you information regarding the debt.
From the limited information you provided, the only way the creditor or collection agency could hold you liable for your husband's debt would be if you signed a contract agreeing to be liable. When you request a verification, you should also request a copy of your signature on the contract agreement to show that you are liable.
If a collection agency or creditor sues you, you have a defense to the lawsuit since Minnesota law states you are not liable. Because you would want to defend against such a lawsuit, do not ignore the legal papers you would receive. You will have to submit an Answer to the lawsuit within 20 days of receiving the lawsuit papers. An Answer is a legal document saying that you are not liable for the bill. Also, you would not want to miss the court appearance or the creditor/collection agency would win by default, and would then have a judgment against you. Since your only income is Social Security Retirement benefits, you appear to be "judgment proof," but it is best to avoid the hassle of future collection efforts that would follow a judgment.
I encourage you to contact the collection agency to dispute the debt, request a verification of the debt, and to demand no further contact from the collection agency.
In short, you do not appear to be liable for your husband's credit card debt because he used the card for gambling.
This column is written by the Senior Citizens' Law Project. It is not meant to give complete answers to individual questions. If you are 60 years of age or older and live within the Minnesota Arrowhead Region, you may contact us for legal help or questions by writing to: Senior Citizens' Law Project, Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota, 302 Ordean Bldg., Duluth, MN 55802. Please include a phone number and return address. To view previous articles, go to: www.lasnem.org. Reprint by permission only.
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