Contesting life insurance beneficiary: Can it be done?

by Guest » Sun Nov 04, 2007 01:17 pm
Guest

My brothers 19 year old son just got killed in an auto accident. We think he had his 19 year old girlfriend ( that he planned to marry someday)as beneficiary on life ins. through his company. Can his parents think of contesting life insurance beneficiary and what are their chances?

Total Comments: 133

Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 05:00 pm Post Subject:

someone, unanimously is contesting the payout of the insurance policy.


I think you mean anonymously. The insurance company may not have to tell you right now who it is that is contesting the policy, but they will eventually. If there has been a probate case opened in the local court, you can force the insurance company to reveal that information with a legal discovery request.

If probate has not been opened yet, an attorney can write a strong demand letter that will probably get the insurance company to reveal the details of the challenge. That might cost you a couple of hundred dollars.

You can always call the insurance company and simply ask who it is that has filed a challenge, and they will probably tell you IF you are the person listed as the primary beneficiary. Then you can write your own responsive letter stating your position with respect to the challenge.

Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 05:17 pm Post Subject:

his life insurance policies listed his father who is deceased as beneficiary. For some reason the eldest daughter received one whole policy and was able to receive 1/4 of the other policy


The most likely explanation for this is that the eldest daughter was named the contingent beneficiary of one policy, so the entire proceeds were hers. The other policy was divided per stirpes per state probate law, and each child received 1/4 of the policy proceeds.

Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2013 03:09 am Post Subject: who will be next heir

My husband recently died suddenly and his mother has a life insurance policy and will naming him as the only beneficiary. There are no other living siblings, his father has also passed. There is (3) living grandchildren. My husband's will left everything to me. Does this mean I will inherit from his mothers's insurance and estate if she does not change her will since I was her daughter in law.

Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2013 03:38 am Post Subject:

My condolences for the loss of your husband.

Does this mean I will inherit from his mothers's insurance and estate if she does not change her will since I was her daughter in law.


Almost certainly NO. Most state probate laws use a distribution procedure known as PER STIRPES. This means that estate assets remain in the BLOODLINE, and as a spouse, you are not there. Your children, if you have any (and/or any other grandchildren of deceased parents), are among the top line as next of kin of their father, as are any siblings, parents, aunts or uncles by birth (not by marriage), and any cousins (if there are no surviving aunts or uncles), of the decedent.

Per stirpes will distribute equal shares of an estate into each of the downline, upline, or adjacent bloodlines of the decedent, always looking to the down (children) first, up (parents) second, and horizontal (siblings) third. The diagonals (aunts, uncles, and their children) are next. But the spouses of any of them are necessarily excluded as outside the bloodline.

Unless your mother-in-law changes her will and life insurance beneficiaries, you, personally, are in line for exactly $0 of her estate.

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 08:22 pm Post Subject: Are life insurance payouts a matter of public record?

how can i find out how much money my siblings received from our step father's life insurance policies? We live in Minnesota..

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 09:15 pm Post Subject:

Ask your siblings. Doesn't matter where you live.

Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2013 06:06 pm Post Subject: Beneficiary Survived, But Didn't Collect Insurance Proceeds

My dad was the only named beneficiary of my uncle's life insurance policy. My uncle died. My dad survived him. My dad never collected on the policy. My dad is now dead. My dad had a will. My uncle had two other siblings who are still living. Where does the money go?

Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2013 07:09 pm Post Subject:

The money belongs to your father. What is the reason why he never collected on the policy? Because he was alive at the time of your uncle's death, but is now, himself, deceased, the money is payable to his estate, where it will be divided among his creditors or his heirs. The death benefit is out of your deceased uncle's blood line.

Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2013 11:35 pm Post Subject:

My father never collected because, I assume, he didn't know about it. My wife discovered the policy when our state published a list.

Posted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 02:43 pm Post Subject:

Then whoever is the administrator of your father's estate needs to make an application the state to obtain the money they are holding (it will require submitting legal evidence of that person's role along with the application to obtain the proceeds). The insurance company failed to contact the beneficiary following the insured's death -- of which they were aware because they get that information from Social Security -- and then they later escheated the money to the state.

A number of states, beginning with Florida and California, have obtained large monetary settlements with a number of insurance companies over that failure to contact the beneficiary.

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