How to track down unclaimed life insurance policy
- Jim Miller: Savvy Senior
- November 15, 2021
- 830
Dear Savvy Senior,
When my dad died, we thought he had a life insurance policy, but we have no idea how to track it down. Any suggestions?
Searching Son
Dear Searching,
Lost or forgotten life insurance policies are very common in the U.S. According to a study by Consumer Reports, one out of every 600 people is the beneficiary of an unclaimed life insurance policy with an average benefit of $2,000. It could be like finding out you have a secret savings account.
While, unfortunately, there isn’t a national database for tracking down these policies, there are a number of strategies and a few new resources that can help your search. Here are several to get you started.
Search his records
Check your dad’s financial records or areas where he kept his important papers for a policy, records of premium payments or bills from an insurer. Also contact his employer or former employer benefits administrator, insurance agents, financial planner, accountant, attorney or other adviser and ask if they know about a life insurance policy. Also check safe-deposit boxes, monitor the mail for premium invoices or whole-life dividend notices, and review old income-tax returns, looking for interest income from and interest expenses paid to life insurance companies.
Get help
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners offers a policy locator service (see www.NAIC.organd click on Consumer, then on Life Insurance Policy Locator) that lets you run a nationwide search for insurance policies or annuities in the names of people who have died. There also are six state insurance departments (Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, North Carolina and Oregon) that have free policy locator service programs that can help you search. To find direct access to these state resources, visit the American Council of Life Insurers website at www.ACLI.com and click on Missing Policy Tips.
Contact the insurer
If you suspect that a particular insurer underwrote the policy, contact that carrier’s claim office and ask. The more information you have, like your dad’s date of birth and death, Social Security number, and address, the easier it will be to track down. Contact information for some big insurers include Prudential at 800-778-2255, MetLife at www.Metlife.com/policyfinder, AIG at 800-888-2452, Nationwide at 800-848-6331 and John Hancock at www.JohnHancock.com — click on Lost or unclaimed policy form at the bottom of the page under Quick Links.
Search unclaimed property
If your dad died more than a few years ago, benefits may have already been turned over to the unclaimed property office of the state where the policy was purchased. Go to www.MissingMoney.com, a website of the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, to search records from 39 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. Or to find links to each state’s unclaimed-property division, use www.Unclaimed.org.
If your dad’s name or a potential benefactor’s name produces a hit, you’ll need to prove your claim. Required documentation, which can vary by state, is detailed in claim forms, and a death certificate might be necessary.
Search fee-based services
There are several businesses that offer policy locator services for a fee. The MIB Group, for example, which is a data-sharing service for life and health insurance companies, offers a policy locator service at www.MIB.com for $75. But it only tracks applications for individual policies made since 1996.
You also can get assistance at Policy Inspector (www.PolicyInspector.com) for $99 and L-LIFE (www.LostLifeIns.com) for $108.50, which will do the searching for you.
Send your senior questions to Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit www.SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.