A To-Do List for Widows, and How to Protect the Identity of a Dead Loved One

Widows and widowers are often facing debilitating grief while attempting to get their lives, futures, and finances in order. Having an effective plan and to-do list in place could make this difficult time more emotionally manageable. Also, having a deceased loved one’s identity stolen can be a painful reminder of their absence, and a great violation to their memory, so taking steps to prevent it are important.

• Inform Social Security of the loved one’s death and notify all credit bureaus as well to freeze the person’s credit.
  • Death Certificate and letters testamentary will be required.
• Notify tax preparer, and financial institutions.
  • In the event that there is a non-qualified account then there should be a step-up in basis on at least 50% of the account and possibly 100% of the account, depending on the circumstances.
  • And IRA can be treated as a rollover account for a spouse
• Review life insurance policies and see your options so you can decide what makes the most sense based on cash flow needs.
• Meet with an estate planning attorney if there was a will or trust to understand the loved one’s final wishes.
• Have a tax projection prepared.
• Sign proper forms for all brokerage accounts and new account forms in order to reflect the new ownership and title.

See Karin Price Mueller, A To-Do List for Widows, and How to Protect the Identity of a Dead Loved One, NJ.com, November 6, 2018.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.) for bringing this article to my attention.