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Life Insurance Paid to Estate as Beneficiary
When the Life Insurance Company Wants to Pay Money to the Estate of the Insured
Sometimes a life insurance company has to pay the life insurance proceeds to the Estate of the Insured or person who died. If you need help getting the life insurance benefits which are payable to an Estate, call our life insurance lawyers at the Law Offices of Jason Turchin for a free consultation at (800) 337-7755.
We handle life insurance claims on a contingency fee basis, which means you don’t have to worry about paying us out of pocket to assist with your claim. We only get paid if you or the Estate recovers money from your life insurance claim. Call one of our Florida life insurance attorneys today to find out if you are entitled to compensation at (800) 337-7755.
There are several reasons a life insurance company in Florida may want to pay the policy benefits to an Estate after the insured dies. Sometimes they are correct, and sometimes they are not. We can review the policy and facts to fight to get you the benefits you deserve.
Estate May be the Beneficiary When No Beneficiary is Listed or Alive
A life insurance policy that was paid in full or was being paid through the death of the insured is generally still payable, even if there are no living beneficiaries. The life insurance company cannot typically keep the policy premiums and policy benefits. That is called unjust enrichment under the law.
If you found a policy for a loved one, we can review it to see if there are any beneficiaries, or who may still be able to get the policy benefits. If no beneficiary was listed, or if all beneficiaries are deceased, the policy is generally payable to the Estate of the Insured, unless the policy language is different. If the Estate gets the money, we can assist you with setting up the Estate and making the claim for benefits. The money may go through what is called Florida Probate Administration, and our in house Probate department can assist with this process.
Estate Claims Based on Florida’s New Divorce Law
Florida Statute section 732.703 seems to have wrecked havoc with its effect of divorce, dissolution, or invalidity of marriage on disposition of certain assets at death. The statute says that a designation made by or on behalf of the decedent providing for the payment or transfer at death of an interest in an asset to or for the benefit of the decedent’s former spouse is void as of the time the decedent’s marriage was judicially dissolved or declared invalid by court order prior to the decedent’s death, if the designation was made prior to the dissolution or court order. The decedent’s interest in the asset shall pass as if the decedent’s former spouse predeceased the decedent.
However, the statute provides for several exceptions, like if controlling federal law provides otherwise, or if the governing instrument is signed by the decedent, or on behalf of the decedent, after the order of dissolution or order declaring the marriage invalid and such governing instrument expressly provides that benefits will be payable to the decedent’s former spouse. It may not apply if the order of dissolution or order declaring the marriage invalid requires that the decedent acquire or maintain the asset for the benefit of a former spouse or children of the marriage, payable upon the death of the decedent either outright or in trust, only if other assets of the decedent fulfilling such a requirement for the benefit of the former spouse or children of the marriage do not exist upon the death of the decedent; or if, under the terms of the order of dissolution or order declaring the marriage invalid, the decedent could not have unilaterally terminated or modified the ownership of the asset, or its disposition upon the death of the decedent. There are other exceptions as well.
If the life insurance policy listed the former spouse as beneficiary with no contingent beneficiary, many life insurance companies will opt to pay the benefits to the Estate of the policy owner or insured, rather than the former spouse unless a clear exception applies. If you are a family member, current subsequent spouse, or child of the person who died and the former spouse was listed as beneficiary, you could have a claim for benefits on behalf of the Estate.
The facts and circumstances of each case may vary, so it is important to speak with a life insurance attorney at the Law Offices of Jason Turchin to help determine what rights you may have.
An Estate May be Sued by a Life Insurance Company in Interpleader
When a life insurance company gets competing claims, or feels that more than one person has an argument to the proceeds, it often files an Interpleader lawsuit against all possible beneficiaries. An Interpleader is where the life insurance company tells the Court that it knows it owes the money, but is not certain who to pay. Rather than pay the one it thinks gets the money and be wrong, then having to pay the other, it would rather give the money to the Court registry, like a Court trust account, and let the parties fight it out.
Our life insurance attorneys have handled many Florida life insurance interpleader lawsuits. If you received a life insurance lawsuit or an interpleader lawsuit, contact our interpleader lawyers as soon as possible. You may have a very limited time to respond to the lawsuit or your claim could be barred forever.
If you have a family member whose Estate was named in an Interpleader lawsuit, we can help sort out who may be entitled to make a claim to the benefits, and can also help set up the Estate to make the appropriate claims.
Call Us for a Free Life Insurance Estate Claim Consultation
At the Law Offices of Jason Turchin, we have handled many life insurance claims by an Estate and also against Estates. We can review the facts to determine who has what rights under the law. Don’t accept what the life insurance company tells you. They are not always right. Often, they want to close their claims as quickly as possible. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation.
Contact our firm now or call (800) 337-7755. It’s a free consultation for your life insurance claim!
At the Law Offices of Jason Turchin and through our network of nationwide life insurance attorneys, our life insurance attorneys can represent you in Florida, and throughout the United States.