What to do when a Mercedes-Benz Financial Services account holder dies

Yes. MBFS does not offer account transfers as a general matter, but its published FAQ states it will accommodate transfer requests from the families of deceased customers who wish to keep the vehicle. A family member calls 1-800-654-6222 to request a credit application; the transfer is subject to credit approval, and on approval the new customer assumes responsibility for the remaining contract. MBFS describes this transfer service as complimentary for the families of deceased customers.

No. A vehicle loan and a vehicle lease are debts, not assets, so there is no payable-on-death or beneficiary designation. When the borrower or lessee dies, the obligation becomes part of the estate. The estate resolves a loan by paying it off, selling the vehicle, or arranging a transfer, and resolves a lease by returning the vehicle, buying it out, or transferring it to a qualified family member.

MBFS asks the caller to have the death certificate for the deceased borrower or lessee ready before contacting Customer Service. To establish authority over the estate, MBFS may require Letters of Testamentary (certified court-issued documents showing legal executorship) or a small estate affidavit, which is used when the estate's total assets fall under the dollar limit set by state statute. A family member applying to keep the vehicle also completes a credit application.

Because MBFS owns the leased vehicle, the estate can return the vehicle through the Lease Maturity Department at 1-800-873-5471, buy it out at the contract purchase option stated in the lease agreement, or apply to transfer the lease to a qualified family member by requesting a credit application at 1-800-654-6222. Connecticut lease contracts carry a state-required transfer right under which the original lessee remains jointly liable.

No. The debt is not forgiven; it becomes an obligation of the estate. MBFS does not publish a program that cancels the remaining balance on death. The estate keeps the account current while it is settled — if payments fall behind, contact the Past Due Payments line at 1-800-984-4455 — and then pays off the loan, returns or buys out the lease, sells the vehicle, or transfers the account to a family member.

Call MBFS Customer Service at 1-800-654-6222, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET; the automated payoff-quote line at the same number is available 24 hours. To return a leased vehicle, call the Lease Maturity Department at 1-800-873-5471. Written notice and documents can be mailed to Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, P.O. Box 685, Roanoke, TX 76262. Include the MBFS account number.