What to do when a Mercedes-Benz Financial Services account holder dies
Report the death to Mercedes-Benz Financial Services' MBFS Customer Service at 1-800-654-6222
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services balances do not pass to anyone at death — they are settled. The executor reports the death to the MBFS Customer Service (1-800-654-6222), gets the date-of-death balance in writing, and resolves it through the estate's creditor process.
The first step is contacting Mercedes-Benz Financial Services at 1-800-654-6222 with the account holder's full name, account numbers, and the death certificate in hand.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with Mercedes-Benz Financial Services:
Filing a claim
- Which documents MBFS wants from the estate, and write the list down
- Where to send them, if the representative wants anything other than the general correspondence address
- Loan: once the balance is paid off and the lien is satisfied, MBFS releases the title so the vehicle can be retitled through the estate or sold
- Lease: return the vehicle through the Lease Maturity Department at 1-800-873-5471, or buy it out at the purchase option price stated in the lease agreement
- Loan or lease: a family member who wishes to keep the vehicle calls 1-800-654-6222 to request a credit application and applies to take the account over, subject to credit approval
- Call the Lease Maturity Department at 1-800-873-5471 (Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-8 p.m. ET); the lease-end sequence starts roughly four months before the maturity date
- Schedule the complimentary third-party pre-inspection through OPENLANE at inspections.openlane.com or 800-556-2811
- Review the pre-inspection report; excess wear and use items can be repaired at a dealer first
- Return the vehicle at the dealer by appointment, with the vehicle detached from the Mercedes-Benz app
- A final lease-end statement, based on the inspection performed at turn-in, arrives by mail after the return
- MBFS states that Auto Pay must be cancelled more than 3 days before the next scheduled payment date to be effective for that payment
- On a transfer, the original customer keeps coverage until confirmation of the transfer is received
- The new customer obtains coverage effective the date of transfer
- The deceased customer's full legal name and the date of death
- The MBFS account number or the VIN
- Your name, your role, your phone number and your mailing address
Forms Mercedes-Benz Financial Services issues1
- MBFS credit application
Completed by the family member who wishes to take over the account and keep the vehicle. Sent by the institution on request.1
What happens to each kind of account3
- Loan
MBFS holds a lien on a financed vehicle's title and releases it only after the balance is paid, after which the estate can retitle or sell the vehicle.1
MBFS "will accommodate transfer requests for the families of deceased customers who wish to keep the vehicle", financed or leased, through a credit application subject to credit approval. Both parties receive a confirmation package when it is complete, and the vehicle may be handed over once it arrives.1
- Vehicle lease
A leased vehicle is owned by MBFS throughout, so the estate returns it, buys it out at the contract purchase option, or transfers it to a family member who wishes to keep it.1
On a transfer, the new customer owes all lease-end charges, including the vehicle return fee, missing keys or equipment, excess mileage and excess wear and use. A security deposit moves to the new customer, and any refund at termination goes to the new customer, not the estate.1
- Debt protection, GAP or service contract
On a transfer, extended warranties and optional insurance products do not transfer. The original customer asks the selling dealership about those.1
State requirements Mercedes-Benz Financial Services statesCalifornia
- California
On a completed transfer, MBFS facilitates the vehicle registration in California. Elsewhere the new customer receives the documents needed to register the vehicle.1
What Mercedes-Benz Financial Services provides to the estate1
- Payoff statement
Payoff quotes are immediate, from the 24-hour automated line at 1-800-654-6222 or the online account. The logged-in virtual assistant chat also handles payoff quotes.1
What Mercedes-Benz Financial Services's agreement and guidance say2
- Fees
The MBFS FAQ says the deceased-customer transfer "is complementary to support the families of deceased customers."1
- What it says about taxes
The MBFS FAQ says that on a completed transfer "the new customer assumes responsibility for all financial obligations", including sales and property taxes, parking tickets and traffic violations accrued or assessed before the transfer date.1
Not in Mercedes-Benz Financial Services's published guidance9
- A procedure for reporting a death
- A department for deceased-customer accounts
- A claim form
- An online way to report a death
- A list of required documents
- How long a claim takes
- Death-discharge program
- Payoff mailing address
- Return of original documents
Sources1
- 1.FAQs
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services' MBFS Customer Service can be reached by phone at 1-800-654-6222 and fax at 1-877-887-8608 for questions throughout the claims process.
Sources
Data sourced from Mercedes-Benz Financial Services primary sources (9 pages reviewed). How we research.
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services death claims support
MBFS Customer Service
Phone
Toll-free
Lease Maturity Department (returning the leased vehicle)
Past Due Payments, if the estate falls behind
Fax
Hours
Mailing address
Website
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