As a personal representative, you’ll want to publish a Notice to Creditors (the “Notice”) in a local newspaper and serve the Notice on the deceased person’s known creditors.
For unknown creditors, publishing the Notice is important because it reduces the timeframe the unknown creditor can file a claim against the deceased person’s estate. With this Notice, the statute of limitations for the unknown creditor to collect a debt is reduced from 24 months to three months. In other words, without it, you’ll be waiting two years to finalize financials for the estate.
The first step is to publish the Notice to Creditors. The purpose of the Notice is to uncover any claims that are not discovered during a diligent review of the deceased person’s financial records.
Select a newspaper published in the county where the estate is administered. If there isn’t a newspaper published in the county, then you can select one that offers a general circulation in that county. You’ll need to submit a legal notice to the publication that contains the following information:
Name of the deceased person
File number of the estate
Designation and address of the court where proceedings are pending
Your name and address as the personal representative
Name and address of your probate attorney
Date of first publication
Statement that creditors must file claims with the court within three months or be forever barred from collecting on the debt
This notice must be published once a week for two consecutive weeks. Here are examples to reference.
TIP: Since the only creditors entitled to payment are those that have filed a valid claim against the estate, it’s best to wait until the end of the three-month period before paying any of the deceased person’s creditors.
For known creditors, your search for debts can begin with the mailbox. Gather all monthly bills sent to the deceased person via USPS or email. Contact the creditor and ask if they will suspend collection while you sort out the details of the estate. If they agree, this can help save any additional fees incurred due to delayed payment.
Then you’ll want to branch out further to uncover any other debts. Additional places to look may include:
Bank accounts. Examine the deceased person’s bank account ledgers for any ongoing or regular payments to a third-party.
Financial files. Explore any financial files for invoices, correspondence, or notices of outstanding debts.
State and county records. Ask your probate attorney to perform a search for any lawsuits, liens, or judgements again the deceased person.
Your notice to known creditors should contain the same information outlined above in the notice published with the local newspaper. Sending this notice as soon as possible via certified mail or shipping company (e.g. FedEx / UPS) is the most ideal plan. At a minimum, you’ll want to send notice to known creditors at least 30 days before the end of the three-month creditors’ claim period. If this notice is served with less than 30 days before the end of the three-month creditors’ claim period, then they will have 30 days from the date they received this notice to file a valid claim against the estate.
When the three-month creditors’ claim period ends, ask your probate attorney to check the court docket for creditors who have filed claims. You then have 30 days to object to any claims and submit a Statement Regarding Creditors to the court.
The Statement Regarding Creditors informs the court that, as the personal representative, you’ve performed a diligent search for creditors of the probate estate. In this document, you’re required to list all creditors uncovered through your search and those that have made valid claims against the estate. The Statement Regarding Creditors must be filed within four months after the first date of publication of the Notice to Creditors.
Example: If your Notice to Creditors is published on April 1, you must file the Statement Regarding Creditors with the court on or before July 31.
Once you’ve gone through all of these steps, you can begin to pay creditors who filed a valid claim against the estate.
REMEMBER: Keep extra copies of the deceased person’s death certificate for creditors who request a record. Also keep copies of all your letters, enclosures, proof of delivery, and any correspondence with creditors.
For more information and links to the Florida constitutional statute and rule see our articles:
Florida Probate: What is the Notice to Creditors
Florida Probate: What is the Statement Regarding Creditors?
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Provurb is not a law firm and we do not provide legal advice. Information contained in this blog is for the general education and knowledge of our readers. It is not designed to be, and should not be used as, the sole source of information when analyzing and resolving a legal problem, and it should not be substituted for legal advice. Moreover, the laws of each jurisdiction are different and are constantly changing. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. If you have specific questions regarding a particular fact situation, we urge you to consult with a probate attorney.