Home and auto insurance are the last things you want to think about when a loved one passes, but you don’t want to forget about it in the process of establishing the estate. First, the executor of the estate should have paperwork available to the agent to make changes and cancel the policies.

The auto policy is simple. Whoever is inheriting the vehicles should contact their agent to add the vehicles to their policy. Once all the vehicles are insured elsewhere, the auto policy can be canceled.

Homeowner’s policies are slightly more complicated. If the home is vacant, you have 60 days of coverage on the homeowner’s policy before it needs to be rewritten. After 60 days, any claim can be denied if not rewritten. A policy written for a vacant home is known as a dwelling fire policy. This covers the structure of the home. If the home is occupied, but the occupant will not be the owner, a dwelling fire policy will be needed as well. In both cases, the policies will be written under the name of the estate until the deed of the home is transferred. Once the home has been sold, or the deed has been transferred, it can be rewritten back to a homeowner’s policy for better coverage. Be sure to notify your loved one’s agent as soon as possible for guidance through the process.