Finance Learning Hub

1. Create a death certificate.
   
2. Locate the will.
   
3. Locate all financial documents.
   
4. Make a list of dues and liabilities.
   
5. Notify financial institutions.
   
6. Close and transfer accounts.
   
7. Get reimbursed for claims and manage assets.
   
8. Check income and investments.
   
9. File tax returns.
   
10. Erase online presence.

If the parent passes away at the hospital, you will have to fill a form with details like the deceased’s name, age, mother/father’s name, and address. The details are forwarded to the local municipal body’s zonal office/ registration centre, where the death certificate is issued at the specified time. You can download from the municipal website for multiple copies.

Ensure the details provided are the same as those on any official documents or records like PAN card or Aadhaar card. Any mistake, even the use of initials instead of the full name, can cause problems.

If one dies without a Will then the assets are distributed equally among the legal heirs. The line of legal heirs is clearly defined under Succession law.

Locating all financial documents and organise them. Divide them into four categories- assets, liabilities, expenses and income.These will include bank-related papers (savings accounts/deposits, ATM cards, credit cards), insurance (life, health, motor vehicle), investments (insurance, stocks and mutual funds, savings schemes like Senior Citizen Savings Scheme or NSCs, and fixed deposits), utility bills and account numbers (electricity, water, gas, phone, Internet), taxation, property papers, loan and EMI documents, clubs and other memberships, among others.

The list of typical expenses include utility bills (electricity, water, gas, phone, Internet), credit card dues, insurance premiums, mutual fund SIPs, advance and other tax dues, loan EMIs, subscriptions and membership fees, among others. This is where joint bank accounts and nominations are useful since you can keep using the account to make immediate and crucial payments.

These will include banks, insurers, companies where investments have been made, tax department, and utility bodies. You will also need to contact creditors and home loan/personal loan companies.

In case of a joint account or one with a nominee, you will have to close it and open a new account for the surviving parent. The money will be given to the joint account holder or the nominee.In case of a single account in the name of a parent, you will have to close it and have the proceeds transferred to the nominee as above. If there is no nominee, the amount will pass on to legal heirs for which you will have to procure a will, or in its absence, a succession certificate.

For loans, if the borrower had a cosigner, or joint debtor, the latter is responsible for repaying the loan, and if he is unable to do so, the lender can file a lawsuit to procure the payment. In case of a single borrower, the executor of the will is responsible for settling debts.

For transferring investments other than property, you will have to fill up the specified forms and produce a death certificate as well as identity/residence proofs if you are a nominee or a legal heir. Otherwise, you will have to get a succession certificate.

Submit your bills with prescriptions, reports, x-rays etc. with the prescribed reimbursement form, to the insurance company. Some insurance companies may insist to get the signature from the hospital in the reimbursement form.

If it is a pre-hospitalisation claim, then submit the documents in the same manner.

If it is a post hospitalisation, then wait for your treatment completion & submit. In either case, mention the type of claim in the form

If the gas, telephone, etc, were in the deceased parent’s name, you will have to get the name changed by producing the death certificate, identity proofs, declaration by legal heirs and NOC by other heirs, as well as other specified forms. It’s best to go to the service provider’s website and check all the forms needed before approaching them.NOC by other heirs, as well as other specified forms. It’s best to go to the service provider’s website and check all the forms needed before approaching them.

You will have to transfer the ownership of the vehicle by making an application to the original registered authority by the legal heirs or the person succeeding to the possession of the vehicle, along with the required documents. These can be checked at the website of the transport department of the respective state.