What to do when a Mission Lane account holder dies

Call Mission Lane Customer Service at 1-855-790-8860; the automated system is available 24/7 and live representatives are available Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. You can also send a Secure Message from the deceased's online account if you have access, or mail a written notice of death — together with a copy of the death certificate and proof of your authority over the estate — to Mission Lane LLC, PO Box 105286, Atlanta, GA 30348-5286. Include the account number so the notice is matched to the account.

No. A credit card is a debt, not an asset, so there is no payable-on-death, transfer-on-death, or beneficiary designation, and the account cannot be funded to a trust. When the primary cardholder dies, the outstanding balance becomes part of the estate and is paid from estate assets through the probate creditor-claim process.

Not automatically. The balance is an unsecured debt of the estate and is presented as a claim to be paid from estate assets in the order set by state probate law. Mission Lane's cardholder agreement treats the cardholder's death as an event of default that lets the issuer require immediate payment of the full balance. If the estate lacks enough assets to pay all valid claims, an unsecured credit-card balance may go partly or fully unpaid, but that is determined through the estate process. Mission Lane does not publish a debt-cancellation or credit-protection program that would cancel the balance on death.

An authorized user is not the account holder and is not a co-borrower, so an authorized user is generally not personally liable for the balance. The debt belongs to the primary cardholder's estate. After the primary cardholder's death, notify Mission Lane so the account is closed and card use stops. An authorized user should not continue to use the card once the primary cardholder has died.

Provide a copy of the death certificate and proof that you are the executor or administrator of the estate — typically Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration, or a small estate affidavit where the estate qualifies under state law. Mission Lane will not discuss account information with a third party without documentation of authority, so include that proof and the account number when you notify Customer Service or mail your written notice.

A Mission Lane Secured Visa is backed by a refundable security deposit. Under the standard secured-card structure, when the account is closed the deposit is applied to any remaining balance and any refundable remainder is returned to the account owner — here, the estate. Mission Lane does not publish a deceased-cardholder-specific refund procedure, so confirm the deposit disposition with Customer Service at 1-855-790-8860 when you report the death.