Digital Accounts & Services: What to Do When a Loved One Dies
In our comprehensive guide on what to do after a loved one’s death, you learn the essential steps to take when handling the affairs of the deceased. We wrote this supplemental post with our commitment to provide valuable resources to support and empower you through this difficult time. This post will provide additional information on critical digital accounts and services of your loved one that you must take care of.
Why Deal with Digital Accounts Upon Death
Managing your deceased loved one’s online accounts is essential for:
Preventing Identity Theft
Unmanaged online accounts are prone to identity theft. Hackers can obtain sensitive information from many types of accounts and use them for fraudulent activities.
Financial Management
Dealing with a deceased’s online accounts immediately helps prevent unnecessary payments, penalties, etc. It is also crucial for facilitating the release of funds for beneficiaries or loan payments.
Emotional Closure
Managing and closing online accounts can help the bereaved memorialize their loved one and gain acceptance for the death. It is also a way to inform friends and acquaintances of the death, as well as avoid unintended but often painful reminders or interactions.
Reminders for When a Loved One Dies
Before you begin dealing with your loved one’s affairs, here are a few helpful reminders:
1. Look to Estate Planning Documents for Guidance
Always consult the deceased's trust, will, or similar documents for instructions on how to manage their accounts upon their death. Following their wishes shows your respect and love for them, an act that can also help you through the grieving process.
2. Take It Easy
Don’t rush to complete or resolve all of these accounts all at once. The loss is stressful enough, and the pressure to complete a checklist will only add to this stress. Take breaks and allow yourself to rest, letting yourself remember your loved one even through the pain of losing them.
3. You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
As we’ve said in our previous blog, you can seek others’ help in navigating this challenging period. Feel free to include Rilus Law in your help hotline. Rely on us for useful information and up-to-date resources for resolving issues that you may encounter when dealing with your loved one’s accounts.
4. Look After Your Health
Grief is emotionally and physically taxing. Make sure to stay healthy by eating well, staying hydrated, and getting enough sleep. You need to keep strong to accomplish your tasks.
5. Look Ahead
If there is anything you may learn from this ordeal, that is the importance of planning for your future. It’s the natural time to start thinking about putting your own affairs in order. You don’t want your loved ones to go through difficulties when you pass. Read about digital asset planning to plan ahead for your digital assets.
What to do When a Loved One Dies: Digital Accounts Checklist
In the last post, we covered how to deal with a person’s accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Apple iCloud, Google accounts, X/Twitter, and LinkedIn. Add the accounts/services below to the list of what to take care of when a loved one dies.
Subscription Services
These include:
Streaming platforms (Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, etc.)
Cable or internet services
Music (Amazon, Spotify, Apple, etc.),
Lifestyle (gaming or sports, online magazines or news, dating websites, etc.)
Membership and rewards program (frequent flier points, customer loyalty, rotary club, etc.) – In some cases, there may be an option to transfer frequent flyer points or loyalty rewards to a family member if you contact the company.
If you have been given access, you can go through the person’s email accounts to have a complete list of these subscriptions. You will need to contact the service providers to close these accounts and may need to provide proof of death to do so.
Banking and Financial Accounts
These include checking, savings, investment, loan, and other financial accounts on:
Online banks
E-wallets like PayPal, Venmo, etc.
Credit companies like Equifax, Experian, TransUnion – Notifying them of your loved one’s passing is an essential step for identity theft prevention.
Prioritize the handling of the accounts in which you have joint ownership with the deceased. The ownership, liabilities, and beneficiary terms will differ among banks or financial companies and account types. You must review the terms and policies on death for every account to successfully close, transfer funds, or administer the benefits from these accounts. Ideally, you want to handle FDIC-insured financial accounts within six months of your loved one’s death. The FDIC will continue to insure these accounts for a six-month grace period to allow families time to restructure accounts as needed while retaining the FDIC insurance.
Shopping and Delivery Services
These include accounts on Amazon, eBay, Etsy, etc. If possible, you may need to cancel in-progress purchases and ongoing delivery schedules to prevent paying for them. Most of these online services automatically renew, but they are easy to terminate upon death. You only need to notify the company to close the account. Some, however, may need official proof like a death certificate before they can officially close the account. Contact their customer service as soon as you can to avoid payments and penalties on unpaid purchases.
Government Services
These include:
Social Security
Passport – You can keep your loved one’s passport as a way to remember them and the trips you shared. Or, you can mail it to the government with a copy of the death certificate to cancel it and avoid identity theft.
Driver’s license – Another key action for identity theft prevention.
Voter registry – If you’d like to remove your loved one from the voter registry, you can provide notice but the requirements will vary in different states.
Income tax
Other accounts issued by government agencies
Contact each specific agency for instructions on how to settle or terminate these accounts. Aside from an official death certificate, you need to collect relevant documents and identifications to present to the agency to successfully close the account.
Dealing with the mail of a deceased loved one can be a delicate task. After a loved one passes away, you can take steps to manage, stop, or forward their mail to a more appropriate location. Here’s how:
Removing from Advertising Lists
Another strategy to minimize the risk of identity theft, you can register your loved one’s name with the Data & Marketing Association's Deceased Do Not Contact List (DDNC) via DMAchoice.org. Within three months, advertising mail should significantly decrease.
Options If You Shared an Address
You can open and manage the mail as necessary, forward all of the deceased’s mail, or forward single pieces of mail. For a single piece of mail, simply cross out your address, write “Forward to” and the new address on the front of the envelope, and leave it for your mail carrier, drop it in a blue collection box, or take it to a post office.
Options If You Have a Different Address
To forward the deceased’s mail to yourself or another address, you have to visit a post office location to complete a change of address request. When you go, you will need to provide documented proof that you are the appointed executor or administrator authorized to manage the deceased's mail (note that a death certificate alone is not sufficient).
By following these steps, you can ensure that the mail of your deceased loved one is handled respectfully and efficiently, reducing unnecessary stress during a difficult time.
Insurance Accounts
These include:
Life insurance
Long-term care (LTC)
Health
Auto or vehicle
Home
Emergency or disaster
Include all insurance policies, whether the deceased is listed as owner, insured, or beneficiary. Managing these accounts facilitates insurance payouts and prevents future complications that may arise from the failure to notify of a death.
Support From Rilus Law
Dealing with the offline and online accounts of a deceased loved one is a complex responsibility. If you find this responsibility too physically and emotionally taxing, don’t forget to ask for support from your close friends and family. Also, don’t forget that Rilus Law is always here if you need clarifications and advice on any issues you run into along this difficult path. You’re welcome to chat with our experts for free for detailed information regarding these issues. Additionally, we have free resources in our Loss of a Loved One Guide and a partnership with a weekly grief support group by Core Balance Counseling. As an expression of our condolences for your loss, the first support group session is free for Rilus Law clients.