When a beneficiary dies and find life insurance lost shortly after the insurance of the insured (in the six months to one year, for example), saying that the death benefit should be no problem.
First, determine if the person was or permanent life insurance. If the insured held a long-term policy, you may receive the death benefit if he dies before the end of the lease term. When he died after the date of expiry of policy, you would not do anything.
If the insured had a permanent life insurance, you get the money if the death occurred while the policy was "in force", ie, all premium payments were made at the time of death . If death has been a while since you benefit with interest from the date of death.
If the life insurance policy has expired - meaning that the policyholder has stopped paying premiums before his death - is there a chance you can get anything. When a permanent life insurance at the beginning, most insurance companies want the status of permanent insurance to one of two options:
"Extended Duration - The insurance company uses the cash value of the contract to a term life insurance the death benefit even with the cash value of the purchase contract. The death benefit to buy the longest period the cash value will continue.
"Reduced paid up" - The insurance policy is kept permanently in power, but the death benefit is reduced.
Gerry Brogli, an actuary for State Farm, in most cases consistent policy of his company further extended when she fell. At State Farm, scope is the default option for most permanent policies.
If the contract expires and the period set aside in the medium and long term before the insured dies, the policy is worthless and life insurance beneficiaries receive nothing. If the insured dies before the period the medium and long term occurs, the beneficiary, the death benefit. If the policy lapsed because the insured died (thus ending premium payments and causing the insurance of the state medium and long term will be provided), the recipient can still collect the full death benefit, regardless of when the extended term was up. The beneficiary must provide access to check the insurance company with a death certificate at the time of death.
There is no time limit during which a beneficiary of life insurance must step forward to collect the money, said Jack Dolan, spokesman for the American Council of Life Insurers. "If a person is 30 years to show [the insured] death, the business remains good," said Dolan.
What if no one reports the death?
If the insured dies and the insurance is not death, namely the overthrow. The insurance will take steps to find out why a policyholder stopped making payments.
If an insurance company never paid, he sent letters to the insured said that the policy may lapse due to unpaid premiums. If the letters go unanswered, the company could find a search for the insured. If it is empty, the company will then lapse the policy.
If the beneficiary is a policy never steps forward, it unfortunately means the money provided for a policy on his life and his successors never a penny. Therefore, a good idea to educate beneficiaries are aware of life insurance you have.
If you're lucky, the state can have your money
In some cases, if a beneficiary fails to claim a death benefit for several years, the money to the state in which the insurance was delegated under the laws of escheat purchased.
If a company knows an insured died and can not find it, the recipient is in turn the full death benefit to the Department of the State Comptroller within three to five years of the death of the insured. The money will be transferred to the state where the insured bought the policy. The money will be presented as "unclaimed property" and, in dormant bank accounts and uncollected rent deposits in a saucepan. The auditors of the department maintains a database containing the names and addresses of the lists of lost life insurance beneficiary.
Many states will try to contact life insurance beneficiaries in an effort to pay benefits for death. In Texas, for example, the names and addresses of recipients are published annually in each county in the state. In New York, the site of the New York State Office of the Comptroller of unclaimed funds has had an online search of all death benefits, to find you. You can find the procedure in your state by contacting the office of your state comptroller or treasurer.
Remember, your chances of playing politics with the state are slim. The insurance company has no obligation to return the money to the state if she is unaware of the deceased. In most cases it is the recipient contacts the insurance company.
The insurer may not transfer the money to the state three to five years to find the beneficiary but knows the insured died. If the state does not benefit the dead, it is likely that the insurer is still looking for the receiver or does not know the deceased.
the unclaimed dead are often transferred to the State. Dave Potter, a spokesman for Hartford Life, says less than 1 percent of its undertaking in case of death unclaimed.
Del chance of a manager of life insurance claims at State Farm, said: "Take on life insurance benefits to a particular state after the death of the insured is extremely rare State Farm of their techniques own research as well as external suppliers used to recover lost locating receiver in case of death of one. our policyholders. In general, this procedure is always the beneficiary.
