Managing the estate’s banking

Paying the deceased’s invoices

You can pay invoices that were addressed to the deceased while they were alive, such as hospital bills, bills related to the deceased’s home and funeral bills, from the estate’s account. To do this, you don’t need to provide a report on the deceased’s family relationships but you will need to verify your identity with your personal online banking codes.

Please sign the invoice and write on it the estate’s account number from which it should be paid.

1. The easiest way to deliver the invoices to us is to use our digital Omaposti mailbox service. If you are a Nordea customer, log in to Netbank and go to Help > Send documents. Select “Estate documents” as the topic of your message. If you are a customer of another bank, go to Nordea.fi/omaposti and select “Log in to Omaposti”. Attach the invoices to the message as scanned documents or PDF files. Please don’t send any other orders concerning the estate’s affairs using these channels. 
2. Alternatively, you can send the invoices to us in a payment service envelope. We recommend that you primarily use our order form to order payment service envelopes for paying an estate’s invoices. You can also order the envelopes from our Customer Service.
3. If you need to pay an overdue or urgent invoice, please call our Customer Service and have your online access codes at hand when you call. 

The invoice payments we process are subject to the fees set in our tariff. See our price list for invoice payments.

Making changes to services and agreements

Any payment service agreements and direct debits the deceased had will remain in force. We recommend that you review these and terminate the ones that are no longer relevant. To do this, you will need to provide a life certificate which proves that you are a party to the estate.

Meanwhile, any e-invoices, online banking codes, access to accounts as well as payment and parallel cards will be terminated automatically. If the deceased had a jointly owned account, the account will remain in force and the estate will replace the deceased as the co-owner.

Life and health insurance policies are deactivated on the date of death. These insurance policies often include an insurance benefit, which you need to claim separately. You can file a life insurance claim with the insurance company before the estate inventory. Visit nordea.fi/korvaushakemus for instructions (in Finnish) on how to file a claim with Nordea. The insurance benefit is paid out in accordance with the beneficiary clause in the insurance policy.

Inventory of a safety deposit box

If the deceased had a safety deposit box, the contents need to be inventoried before the estate inventory is conducted. The safety deposit box inventory is handled by the bank’s representatives together with a party to the estate or an authorised representative of the parties to the estate. The contents of the safety deposit box will be inventoried and copies of documents can be made for the estate inventory, if needed. The safety deposit box may not be cleared out before the estate inventory.

Book an appointment in branch for the inventory of the safety deposit box by calling our Customer Service. We will ask you to verify your identity when you call. 

How to open an expense account

To make it easier for you to pay the invoices of an estate before the estate inventory, you can open an expense account for the estate. A representative authorised by the parties to the estate will then be able to use this account for paying invoices in their Nordea Netbank.

Opening an expense account requires the consent of all parties to the estate known before the estate inventory. They need to provide a power of attorney for opening the expense account and adding the account to the authorised representative’s Nordea Netbank. You also need to provide us with a report on the deceased’s family relationships and any other known documents, such as a will if there is one. 

A maximum of 10,000 euros or a smaller amount that is estimated to cover any upcoming invoices may be transferred to the expense account from the estate’s other accounts with Nordea. 

To open the expense account, you need to fill in two forms:

• Appendix to account agreement, terms and conditions of an estate’s expense accountOpens new window (in Finnish) and 
• Power of attorney for opening an estate’s expense accountOpens new window (in Finnish)

You can send all forms and documents to us via our digital Omaposti mailbox service. Select “Estate documents” as the subject of your message.

Dealing with an estate’s debts

The parties to the estate are not personally liable to repay any debts the deceased had when they were alive. There are a few exceptions to this rule, such as cases in which the obligation to conduct an estate inventory is neglected. If the parties to the estate decide to apply for a new loan for the estate, they will be personally liable to repay the loan.

If the parties to the estate want to apply for a payment holiday until the estate inventory is finalised, please call our Customer Service. When you call us about an estate’s loans, give home loans as the reason for your call instead of bereavement advice. 

Any loan and pledge agreements will remain in force when the borrower and/or pledger dies until the debt has been repaid. If the parties to the estate intend to sell a property that is being used as collateral for a loan, please contact us well in advance to agree on either paying off the loan or providing other collateral.

If the deceased’s debts can’t be covered by the estate’s assets, please contact us to discuss this further. We will review the overall situation and give you advice on what to do. When you call our Customer Service, select bereavement advice as the reason for your call.

Any of the parties to the estate may file a petition with the district court for the appointment of an estate distributor. An estate distributor is usually appointed when there are estate disputes, debts or other special circumstances (for example, one of the parties to the estate is under guardianship).

How to make a life insurance claim

Life and health insurance policies are deactivated on the date of death. These insurance policies often include an insurance benefit, which you need to claim separately. You can file a life insurance claim with the insurance company before the estate inventory. The insurance benefit is paid out in accordance with the beneficiary clause in the insurance policy.

Visit nordea.fi/korvaushakemus for instructions (in Finnish) on how to file a claim with Nordea.