A Minsk resident received an inheritance after his mother's death and lost his car as a result — how is this possible

After the death of a testator, their property, as a rule, passes to relatives by way of inheritance. The assets accumulated during a lifetime vary for each person: in one case, the inheritance is significant; in another, everything is much more modest.

At the same time, accepting an inheritance should be approached with caution, keeping in mind the risk of inheriting the debts of the deceased testator (if any). Under Article 1086 of the Civil Code, each person who has accepted an inheritance is liable for the testator's debts within the limits of the value of the inherited property that passed to them, determined as of the date of the opening of the inheritance.

A man found himself in such a situation with a surprise inheritance. During her lifetime, his mother owed a large sum of money (about 19 thousand rubles) to an insurance company, and the funds were being forcibly collected by a bailiff.

In 2025, the woman died without having paid off the debt. The estate after the debtor's death included a land plot and a single-story house located on it. Her son became the heir, to whom the status of debtor in the enforcement proceedings regarding the mother's property obligations was transferred.

Since the debt to the insurance company was not repaid by the new debtor either, the bailiff decided to issue an order prohibiting the man from carrying out registration actions regarding property belonging to him as a measure to enforce the writ of execution.

“Under Article 60 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus ‘On Enforcement Proceedings,’ measures to secure the execution of an enforcement document may be taken at any stage of enforcement proceedings if failure to take them could complicate or make impossible its execution,” explained Liliya Koran, prosecutor of the Minsk Prosecutor's Office department for supervising the compliance of court rulings in civil cases with the law. “When executing such a document related to the collection of funds, measures to secure the execution of the enforcement document are taken within the amount necessary to satisfy the claims contained in the enforcement document, collect (withhold) the costs of executing the enforcement document, and the enforcement fee.”

The choice fell on the debtor's car, as the value of the real estate inherited from his mother significantly exceeded the amount of the debt (unlike the value of the vehicle).

The man attempted to appeal the issued order: first to a senior bailiff, and having failed, in court. He explained his objection by stating that his personal car was not inherited property and had been acquired in 2023, prior to his mother's death.

The court recognized the bailiff's actions in issuing the appealed order as lawful.

As follows from the court's findings, Article 1086 of the Civil Code limits the liability of heirs for the debts of the testator solely to the value of the inherited property that passed to them, and not to its specific composition.

The law does not contain a prohibition against the testator's debts being satisfied by their heirs out of property that is the personal asset of the heir who inherited the testator's debts, provided it remains within the limits of the value of the inherited property. Thus, the bailiff did not violate the citizen's rights in any way.

“Thus, accepting an inheritance is a serious responsibility,” Liliya Koran notes. “When taking ownership of the deceased's property, it is also necessary to clarify the amount of their debts in order to assess the viability of such an acquisition. If the debts exceed the value of the inherited property, it is worth thinking twice.”

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