There are several methods on how to find an unclaimed life insurance policy if you suspect that you are a beneficiary of a close relative who has passed away. Additionally, you can reach out to the life insurance company if such a policy is unclaimed.
Contacting insurance providers, allows you to inquire about your status as a beneficiary and help you claim if applicable. However, if you’re unsure about the insurance provider or even if a policy exists, there are free tools and personal resources available to aid in your search.
What is Unclaimed Insurance?
When a policyholder passes away and the beneficiary neglects to get in touch with the insurer to request the death benefit, the policy becomes unclaimed. It may also happen if the beneficiary has forgotten about the policy or is unaware of it. or is unable to locate the policy, or has incomplete information. But once you know where to look for an unclaimed insurance policy, there are a few things you should think about doing.
How To Find an Unclaimed Life Insurance Policy
If you don’t know who to reach out to about how to find an unclaimed life insurance policy. You can consider following these procedures.
Gather Paperwork
You can review a relative’s filing cabinet or secure box for documentation of a life insurance plan. Additionally, you could also review past tax filings and bank statements, which might yield results.
However, note that gathering paperwork can be both time-wasting and emotionally taxing, particularly in times of grief. Moreover, consider looking for other approaches to finding old life insurance policies for greater efficiency.
Contact State Officials
Consider reaching out to the state’s insurance department to locate the life insurance policy of your loved one. Moreover, it’s important to note that the policyholder might have obtained the policy in a different state from where they passed away. However, it’s advisable to check any past states where the deceased resided.
Contact the Deceased Financial Advisor
Reach out to your loved one’s financial advisor or accountant to find life insurance policies. If the client granted permission, the financial advisor might have already communicated with the provider and assisted beneficiaries in filing a claim.
However, if you are unsuccessful with the financial advisor but your loved one has an executor, consider asking the executor to contact the financial advisor. Executors should be able to provide you, as a beneficiary, with the name of the life insurance company, allowing you to contact them directly.
Work with the Third-Party Company
Various third-party companies specialize in finding unclaimed life insurance policies. Consider reaching out to organizations like the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators or the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. This is to determine if there are any funds owed to you.
Contact the Past Employer
Reach out to the Human Resources department of your relative’s newest employer to inquire about any life insurance policies included in their employee benefits packages. Employers often maintain records of life insurance policies for both current and former employees.
How To Prevent an Unclaimed Life Insurance Policy
To help prevent unclaimed life insurance, it’s advisable to communicate with your relatives. Also, request that they inform beneficiaries about being named on a policy. Additionally, it’s important to ensure that contact information for all parties involved is kept on the policy.
Also, it’s important to follow every detail when organizing and storing policy information. For instance, you can keep two copies of all policies, one at home with financial documents and another in a secured box or with an honest relative.
Moreover, it suggests tracking the dates of the policy update on each copy to indicate the most current one. Furthermore, keeping beneficiary information and life insurance documentation updated may require extra effort. However, it can assist a loved one in finding a policy when needed. It helps ensure that the life insurance benefit is passed on as intended.
What Happens to Unclaimed Life Insurance Money?
Each state has specific laws governing unclaimed life insurance payouts. In many events, the life insurance policy process, along with any extra interest, is transferred to the state of the policyholder after a certain period.
Additionally, named beneficiaries can claim their unclaimed payout through the state Treasury. Given that unclaimed property laws differ by state, it’s advisable to understand how they operate in your residency.
How Long Does It Take to Claim Life Insurance Policy Funds?
The amount of time for beneficiaries to claim life insurance is determined by state laws and the policies of the life insurance company. Generally, there isn’t a strict time limit.
However, after a beneficiary submits a claim, it typically takes several weeks to a month for an insurance company to process the claim and disburse the payout.
Conclusion
If you believe a close relative named you as a beneficiary in their policy, there are some straightforward methods on how to find such an unclaimed life insurance policy. In most cases, you might need to sort through documents and reach out to a relative or financial advisor.