What to Do If You Don’t Believe the Life Insurance Beneficiary List Is Accurate After the Death of a Parent

In actuality, the insurer is obligated to pay insurance benefits to the named beneficiaries. The designated beneficiaries, therefore, owns the right to claim for their insurance benefits after the death of the insurer.

More often than not, the insured choose their spouse or children to be their beneficiaries.

However, in the case of any life occurrence, like divorce or death, the insured is required to update their beneficiary list. Nonetheless, sometimes they fail to do so, resulting in an inaccurate beneficiary list.

If you are one of the beneficiaries and you suspect your parent did not update the list, maybe after divorce, you can contest, the process is tedious, but if you can prove your parent neglected to amend, the following steps with guide you:

Gather Evidence

In contesting life insurance beneficiary, you need court documents to get the required information. You need to contact the court clerk who gave the order.

In the process, you will pay a fee and provide the following information:

• The estimated date of the order
• Identity of attorneys, judges, and any other information
• Names of the parties involved

After that, connect with the department of vital statistics, or an agency responsible for issuing the divorce certificate. You may need to avail a copy of your parent’s passport, driver’s license, and the court order.

Lastly, communicate with your potential witnesses. They may include individuals who witnessed the divorce process. Ensure you prepare them to testify on your behalf.

Seek Court Orders

If the beneficiary is already receiving the benefits, you should file a suit against them to recover the benefits.

However, if the insurer has not started paying out the benefits to the named beneficiary, consider getting an attorney to help you in the process. They may aid in giving you the legal advice and preparing the documents. Because different states have distinct laws regarding insurance and probate, you should check your state laws.

In some countries, the insurer has to channel the benefits to the spouse. In that case, you may require a written letter from your divorced parent for the process to succeed.

Secondly, to look for evidence, maybe if your parents separated, seek a court order to allow you to access the divorce certificate.

Contest the Policy

Alert the insurance company. Do it in formal writing to prevent them from paying out the benefits to the named beneficiary. The insurer, therefore, will file an interpleader action with the court. A filling that will allow the life insurance company to:

• Surrender the proceeds for the policy to the court
• Identify and handle you and the parties you want to include in the list
• Disengage and let the court decide on who qualifies for the benefits

Once the insurer has done the above, you will receive a notice, which will require your response within the stipulated period. The answer should include reasons why you are contesting the policy, and your attorney should sign it.

Finally, choose a method of settlement that suits your budget.

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