How can I find out if I am the beneficary of an insurance policy?

Question

MY mother passed away in February 2006 and I cannot find the insurance policies to determine if my brother and I are beneficiaries.

Answer 1

I'm so sorry for your loss. What a terrible time to have to even think about an insurance matter. Here's my advice:

1) If you mom was working, call her employer and ask whether she purchased group insurance there; if she was retired, ask her employer if she had life insurance when employed and get the name of the insurer. Then contact the insurer to see if she converted the coverage to an individual policy;
2) Check her bank statements and cancelled checks for at least the past year to see if she was making any electronic or check payments to an insurer;
3) Contact EACH of her creditors (mortgate company, car financing company, credit card(s), etc.) and ask whether she had mortgage or credit life insurance. Before you call, be sure to check hers mortgage bill, which may list whether she purchased mortgage life insurance. Credit insurance covering an auto loan will probably not show up on the loan bill, since many times the premium is paid in full at the time the loan is taken out.
4) Check her safety deposit box and personal papers.
5) Read her will, which may sometimes refer to insurance policies.
6) Ask her close friends and your relatives, who may be able to give you information about insurance she mentioned to them.
7) If all else fails, you may be able to obtain limited information from the Medical Information Bureau. This is a company that acts as a database for medical information reported on applications for life insurance, and for information discovered by insurance companies during the underwriting process. You can go to: http://www.mib.com/html/request_your_record.html and click on "Policy Locator Service" at the bottom of the page.

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

If your mother had a life insurance policy, there was a beneficiary... but, I take it she didn't discuss this with you or your brother prior to her passing.
Did she have a will? An attorney? If there was an attorney, I would contact him or her.
As a matter of law, however, the insurance company would be required to contact you if you were a named beneficiary on a life insurance policy - provided they know their insured has passed.

Answer 3

Whomever the executor of the estate is, can contact the company. That's the ONLY way to tell.

Whatever makes you think she had life insurance in place? The answer to THAT should point you in the direction to locating the company. Keep in mind, 70% of the people in the US who die, die without insurance in place.

If you're asking, there is no central database where you can go look it up - insurance transactions are private.

Answer 4

Look very hard for insurance papers or ask other family members if she made mention about any insurance policies, then contact the insurance company.

Answer 5

The only way would be to find out who she got insurance from and you would have to call them and ask. You should be able to find some kind of statement though that she has from her making payments. good luck, and im sorry to hear about your loss