Lawyer Analysis

Li died of a sudden illness at work. According to relevant regulations on work-related injury insurance, Li's wife Zhao received a one-time work-related death subsidy of over 1 million yuan. However, after Zhao received the subsidy, Li's friend Zhang approached Zhao and claimed that Li had borrowed 800000 yuan from him during his lifetime. This subsidy was Li's inheritance and should be used to repay the loan. In addition, Li's parents also approached Zhao and claimed that the subsidy should belong to Li's estate, and as parents, they also have the right to distribute it. However, Li's grandparents believed that they had raised him from a young age, and as a close relative of Li, they should also have the right to distribute the property. Zhao didn't know what to do.

Lawyer Analysis

1、 The one-time work-related death benefit is not an inheritance

Legacy is the personal property left by a natural person during their lifetime. The one-time work-related death subsidy is a type of property damage compensation based on the spiritual comfort and overall expected income loss paid to the close relatives of the deceased after their death. The right holder to receive this payment is the close relatives of the deceased, not the deceased. Therefore, the one-time work-related death subsidy does not belong to the estate.

2、 The distribution subject of one-time work-related death subsidy

Although according to relevant regulations, the subject receiving work-related death benefits is the close relatives of the deceased. However, the scope of near relatives stipulated in the Civil Code of China is relatively wide: spouses, parents, children, brothers and sisters, grandparents, maternal grandparents, grandchildren, and grandchildren are all near relatives. In practice, courts generally believe that although the amount does not belong to the estate, its distribution subject can refer to the scope and order of inheritance. Spouses, parents, and children are usually recognized by the court as the distribution subjects of the property.

3、 Allocation ratio of one-time work-related death benefits

In the absence of special circumstances, courts usually tend to distribute evenly according to the number of distribution subjects. However, there are also situations where the court takes care of the actual economic situation of the parties and distributes more appropriately. For example, if one party has a physical illness that requires hospitalization, or if their children need education at a young age, more can be allocated appropriately.

4、 Other funds obtained based on work-related deaths that are not part of the estate

1. Funeral subsidy: refers to the actual expenses required for handling funeral affairs, organizing funerals, etc., which should be actually used and should not be allocated.

2. Pension for supporting relatives: refers to the expenses distributed to the relatives who were supported by the deceased during their lifetime (such as underage children or spouses, parents, etc. who have no economic income and need to support the deceased during their lifetime), and therefore do not participate in the distribution.

In summary, the work-related benefits received by close relatives do not belong to the inheritance that should be used to repay the deceased's debts during their lifetime. It should be noted that in addition to the work-related fatalities mentioned in this case, the death compensation obtained for personal injury or accidental death also does not belong to the estate.