How long do you have to claim life insurance?

What documentation do you need when filing a life insurance claim?

While it will vary by insurer, you'll most likely need to provide the following when making a life insurance claim:

• The insured's name, date of birth, date and cause of death, state of residence
• The insured's Social Security number and/or the policy number on the life insurance policy
• The insured’s original certified death certificate or a copy of the insured's certified death certificate (check with the funeral home or the state's vital statistics office)

Submitting a newspaper clipping of the insured's obituary is optional but may help speed up the process. You'll also have to fill out and submit the death benefit claim form. If there's more than one person listed as a beneficiary on the policy, each person named will have to fill out a claim form and submit the required documentation to be considered for their portion of the payout.

What would cause a life insurance claim to be denied?

Here are a few of the more common reasons for a life insurance payout denial or delay:

• Fraud or cause-of-death concerns: The insurance company may investigate the claim if the policyholder is suspected to have lied on their application or if the insurance company suspects fraud has been committed in any way. This would lead to a delay in the payout. If life insurance fraud is found, the claim will be denied. If the cause of death falls under a policy exclusion, the death benefit may be denied — this might happen if your loved one died as the result of an illness and had a life insurance policy with an accidental death benefit versus a standard all cause death benefit.
• Policy lapse: If the policyholder stopped making the premium payments, the policy might have lapsed. If there was a lapse in life insurance coverage at the time of death, the claim may be denied since no coverage was in force.
• Incomplete paperwork: If you don't have all the required paperwork or information on the insured, there may be a delay in the payout until you provide the required documentation.
• Death occurred during the contestability period: Many life insurance policies include a contestability period during which the insurer is required to review the policy application for fraud and/or material misrepresentation(s). If no fraud or material misrepresentations are found, you can still receive a death benefit, but the payout may be delayed during the investigation. If the insured was dishonest on their application, the insurance company might deny the claim, and you wouldn't receive a death benefit.

The unclaimed life insurance benefits act may help

Learn more about what to do if you suspect a loved one has an unclaimed life insurance death benefit.