re: Terminal Illness Hypothetical: Single with no assets, who eats the credit card debt?

quote:

---

It becomes a debt of your estate. If a legatee accepts your estate, they become responsible for the debts of the estate. 

---

Up to the amount of the legacy. They're not on the hook for anything over that.

quote:

---

If no one accepts your estate (for which there is apparently nothing), then the credit card companies eat it.

---

One of our employees was the executrix of a distant relative. He died essentially penniless, leaving a couple thousand in credit card debt. She no longer works for us, but it's the last address the credit card company has. Every few months someone calls wanting to talk to her.