SINGAPORE: A young man recently turned to an online forum for advice after receiving a daunting demand from a bank to repay the colossal S$400,000 debt left by his father, who has been missing for over nine years.
In his post on r/singaporefi, he shared that his father disappeared in 2015, and that neither he nor his mother had any clue about his financial troubles back then. It was only recently that they learned that his father had a credit card debt, which had been quietly accruing interest over the years.
“Debt has been going unpaid for nine whole years without my knowledge,” he said. “It is now around 400,000 SGD.”
The young man was also concerned about the consequences if they were unable to repay the debt, fearing that the bank would try to seize their personal belongings, such as his PC, monitor, and prized collection, which he had purchased and paid for with his own money.
He then asked, “Do the debts fall on my mother if we and the government declare him deceased? ”
“His debt is his debt. You don’t inherit his debt.”
Many people reassured the young man that neither he nor his mother would be held responsible for the massive debt his missing father left behind. They also confirmed that the bank cannot take their personal possessions.
One individual said, “His debt is his debt. You don’t inherit his debt. Don’t acknowledge that his debt is yours or your family’s or that your assets are his.”
Another commented, “From my understanding, your father’s debt is under his own name therefore whatever possession that is under his name will be use to pay off the debt.
However since it has been quite some time since then, the bank might declare the debt as “bad debt” as it can no longer be recovered.”
A third individual also shared, “My dad passed when I was 17. He knew he couldn’t live much longer, and maxed out all his credit cards to buy things for us, owing the bank high 5-fgures I believe. Then he died in debt.
Today I’m 27, the bank never ever took our HDB (I believe HDB cannot be claimed by creditors ever) nor the things he bought for us with his credit cards.”
Others advised the young man to seek legal counsel to gain a more detailed understanding of his situation and explore his options.
They also recommended reaching out to the Credit Bureau Singapore to discuss the debt and obtain expert guidance on how to handle it.
Additionally, some suggested that he consider meeting with a Member of Parliament to discuss his case and explore any available support or intervention that might assist in resolving the issue.
One individual added, “May I suggest that you go speak with your MP? Because there are professionals who volunteer at these Meet The People sessions. Or the MPs and their volunteers have relevant contacts to help you out. Hope this helps!”
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