Delaware is diving headfirst into digital estate planning.
Gov. Jack Markell (D-Delaware) signed a bill Tuesday that forces companies like Google or Facebook to hand over control of accounts to someone’s executor or guardian after their death.
Chief sponsor Rep. Darryl Scott (D-Dover) notes that before this legislation, businesses weren’t required to hand over control of the account, even to someone outlined in a will.
“In many cases, it’s the family that will end up having to deal with these issues and we think that we’ve provided them with the tools to address it in the way that they would see fit,” said Scott.
Scott adds under the new law companies can no longer decide how to treat these accounts, potentially leaving important information out of the hands of family members.
“They no longer can say as part of the terms of service that we’re going to cancel your account upon your death, we’re going to memorialize it as part of your passing. They have to give the users an ability to designate that separately,” said Scott.
Other states have similar laws, but they aren’t as comprehensive.
Businesses that don’t comply with access requests could face civil penalties.