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What happens if the cosigner on my car loan passes away?

My stepfather was the cosigner on my car loan, but he passed away. What happens now?

avatar
Eric Schad · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Sorry to hear about your stepfather’s passing. That’s certainly tough, but hopefully this advice can make the paperwork side of things a bit easier to handle.
When a cosigner on a
car loan
 passes away, one of two things can happen depending on how your loan contract is structured:
  • The estate of the deceased becomes the cosigner and is responsible for the payments if you default
  • The cosigner simply falls off the loan with no long-standing ramifications
In either case, you should continue making your car loan payments, as failing to do so will have immediate ramifications. You can also request to have the cosigner removed from the loan or replaced with another person. The replacement person is still subject to a normal background check.
If you’re looking to free up some cash to make paying your car loan easier, consider finding a cheaper car insurance policy. Download the
Jerry
 app to compare dozens of competitive quotes and find the best rates on the market for your coverage level.
MORE:
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