What Happens To Your Guns After You Die?

What Happens To Your Guns When You Die?

Death is probably at the top of the list of things that people try not to spend a lot of time thinking about. Inevitably, death rears its head up when a family member or a close relative expires.

Next of kin usually has the responsibility of handling the affairs of the estate: settling bills, distributing inheritances, and disposing of property. Much discussion centers around which heir will acquire a specific item, especially if a will can't be found. Typical interest centers on the subjects of cash, stocks, bonds, real estate, and other investments.

Well, what about the firearms? Who gets them? It is estimated that about 300 million guns are owned by about 100 million citizens in this country. In fact, according to a recent "Wonkblog" estimate - based on BATFE surveys -. the average gun owning household had 8.1 firearms in 2013. This figure is almost a 100 percent increase from the estimated 4.2 firearms in gun owning households in 1994.

If you were to suddenly die, who would you want to receive your guns? Have you even given the matter any thought? Do you even have any family members or friends who actually like guns?

It is too easy to assume that there will be immediate family members who will have an interest in your guns. At the risk of potentially having you to initiate an awkward conversation with family and friends, I am giving you the task of planning the future of your guns.

In some cases, surviving wives suddenly become "gun widows." Not only do they have to find a way to cope with the sudden loss of their husband, but they now also have the undesirable status of being a reluctant gun owner. They have firearms in their homes that they do not want, do not know what to do with them, and do not know how to dispose of them.

As an ardent supporter of gun rights, the last thing that I would want is for one of my heirs to swap each of my guns for a $50 grocery store gift card. I would want my guns to have a loving and appreciative home rather than to be melted down into a molten mass by the local police department.

So, while I have your attention, please make the time to plan the future of your guns. Find out who wants them, make an inventory or what you have, and specify your desires in a will.

If - by chance - you can't find a home for your guns after your death, please kindly consider donating them to the NRA's "Firearm For Freedom Fund." They accept firearm donations and use the proceeds to support NRA programs.

For more info on responsible firearm ownership, visit Legally Armed In Detroit.