Map the direct debits first, and only then stop them

After a death many direct debits continue. That is a nuisance with a subscription that was the deceased's alone, and a risk if a partner still lives in the house. Make a list first before you cancel anything or reverse a debit. For each direct debit note the recipient, the reference, the frequency and the account from which it is taken. Add whether the deceased stood alone or together with a partner. A list is a working document and not yet an instruction to the bank to stop everything. Stopping too early can cut a surviving partner off from energy or insurance.

Energy, water, health insurance, contents insurance, buildings insurance and the telephone almost always belong on that list. After that come the newspaper, the gym, streaming services and associations. For fixed costs of the home you look at whether anyone still lives there. If you cancel the energy while the partner is still there, the supply can stop at a moment no one wants. So note with each line whether it affects only the deceased, is joint, or is still unclear. Only the first group is a candidate to report quickly; the rest keeps running until you have spoken to the partner or the supplier.

A bank does not always release the deceased's account at once. Direct debits can therefore still succeed, or be refused because the balance has been blocked. You note both outcomes, because a refused premium can let an insurance lapse without your having meant that. Do not write to the insurer to strike everything out, but with the notice of the death and the question which cover is still needed. Keep the reply and link the letter to the direct-debit line. In that way it stays visible why something has kept running and who confirmed that.

A joint account of a partner works differently from an account in one name. Do not stop all direct debits on the joint account because one of the account holders has died. The bank explains what happens to that account and which acts are still allowed. Until that explanation is there, you limit yourself to recording what is being debited. Ask for statements so that you see what has still been paid after the date of death. Those amounts belong in the account and justification, even if they look small, because a series of small direct debits explains a fallen balance.

You cancel per organisation, with the death certificate as an enclosure when they ask for it. Put in the task the date of your letter, the reference and the date on which the organisation confirms that the direct debit stops. A confirmation is not the same as a last debit, so check the next statement. If something is still collected after that, that is a new task. Do not set the old line to cancelled for as long as that confirmation and that statement are missing. Shared family subscriptions you leave in place until someone has looked at who still uses them.

This is an administrative checklist, not legal advice. The notary, the bank or the body concerned decides what this file needs and in which order. Ervazo keeps the tasks, the letters and the recorded values. The program does not send the letters, does not pay any debts and does not file a return. For each step, note the date, the person and the document you have received. What is still missing stays an open task. A ticked line means only that the administration has been updated. Wait with striking things out until it is clear that a surviving partner will not be left without energy or insurance.