Locating Lost Life Insurance Policy

Posted in Life Insurance

February 13th, 2009

Since your father died, everything is so chaotic. As the executer of the will, it has been your job to coordinate the funeral, get the estate in order and close down his house. You know that he had a life insurance policy, but it is the one piece of paperwork you cannot find. Locating a lost life insurance policy can be challenging, but it is possible.

The first thing to consider when attempting to locate a lost life insurance policy is to try to figure out which company the insured was covered under. Go through the deceased person’s Rolodex and try to find the contact information of the broker the insured may have used. Or perhaps there is a business card from an insurance company among their paperwork. If the deceased was a member of a club or trade association, perhaps the original policy was provided through them.

Try reviewing their tax returns for the past few years, which may turn up information regarding income from and interest expenses paid to life insurance companies. If a search of the policyholders financial, tax and insurance records are uneventful, some phone calls to their professional network could help. You can also try contacting their accountant, lawyer or even business partners, who may have some idea regarding where the policy information may be located.

If these efforts to discover a lost life insurance policy prove fruitless, your state may be able to assist further. All states have insurance boards where you may be able to find someone qualified to assist you. Additionally, some states also have unclaimed property offices. If you have been unable to locate the insurance provider, they may have had the same problems finding you and instead contacted the unclaimed property office.

If all else fails, there are companies that will locate the information for you for a fee.