Why Some Life Insurance Claims are Refused

By: Rick Bouffard

Life insurance is the best way to make sure that your loved ones will be cared for should something happen to you. There is always a lot of expense that comes with a person dying and the money should be available to ensure that there is no undue burden on the people that you leave behind. However, there are certain times when a life insurance policy will be refused. This is something that you certainly do not want to happen to you. When you pass on you want to be sure that the people that are left will have access to the money that you have set aside by way of the life insurance policies. With this in mind there are some considerations that you need to understand when it comes to life insurance and the ways in which it will pay out.

Most people know that life insurance policies have certain stipulations that must be met for the policy to pay out. This is common with most types of insurance out there. Take car insurance for instance. In most cases the claims will only be paid out if the person driving is the insured driver and only when the conditions are correct. The same is true for the life insurance policy that you hold. It speaks directly to the truth of the statements that were made when you applied for the policy. If it is discovered that you failed to list some kind of serious illness on application and it causes your demise then the company can deny the claim.

Another factor is how you die when thinking about life insurance pay outs. Taking your own life is something that will disqualify the coverage right off the top. For many years there have been clauses built into life insurance policies against suicide in all forms. If it is determined that the insured person has taken their own life then the entire policy becomes void and no pay out is made. This was put into effect to help protect the life insurance companies against fraud. There were cases of people who wished to make a lot of money for their loved ones by committing suicide with a large life insurance policy in place.

You should be aware that most life insurance companies will tell you all the ways in which a life insurance claim can be refused. It is in the best interest of the company to be sure that you understand the entire process. If you do not and a mistake is made then there is the possibility of lawsuits and so on. When you take out the policy ask all the questions that you deem necessary. Only through understanding will you fully protect the loved ones that you leave behind.

Rick Bouffard is an insurance industry advisor and technologist who helped create one of the life insurance industry's first ELearning Centers at EFinancial.com. The EFinancial Learning Center contains hundreds of helpful articles and calculators to educate today's insurance shopper and help them make the best decisions for the financial health and future of their family.

Learn more at the ELearning Center

Articles from August 2007
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