How to know if I am a beneficiary of life insurance is a very common question for those who face difficult times when a loved one dies.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Therefore, even though death is a non-preferred subject, we have to be prepared to face its consequences. Turns out, right now, there are a lot of expenses that need to be resolved quickly.
The costs that involve the funeral, which sometimes has to be done, the transfer of the body, even expenses with inventory, are matters that we cannot fail to consider.
So, amidst all this turmoil comes to mind: how do I know if I am a life insurance beneficiary?
Unfortunately, the demand for this information has increased in the Coronavirus crisis. Thankfully, however, there are ways to let you know if the deceased person had insurance and who their beneficiaries are.
If you are interested in this subject, in this article you will understand what you need to do to find out if you are a life insurance beneficiary. Follow!
Life Insurance, what is a beneficiary?
In order to know who is a beneficiary, it is necessary to first know what life insurance is, and how important it is for the family.
Life insurance is a contract that a person makes with an insurer, where the latter undertakes through a policy to pay the agreed amount to the beneficiary in the event of the death of the insured person.
So, life insurance is a guarantee of financial protection that someone takes out to take care of their loved ones.
At the time of their death, persons indicated to benefit from life insurance must contact the insurer to make the redemption. Realize that at this moment, if you want to protect the ones you love, you must choose the insurer well.
So, it was clear here that the question: how to know if I am a beneficiary of life insurance has grounds, because there are families that do not touch on this subject, and only when the event happens that the doubt arises.
Who can be named as a beneficiary of life insurance? See below.
Who can be a beneficiary
Life insurance beneficiary is the person whose policyholder has expressed in the policy the wish to leave the amount assured. The value of the insurance policy is defined at the time of contracting.
The indication of the beneficiary of the life insurance depends on the insured person, who can be a member of his family, his dependents or another person who has no blood ties.
There is also the possibility that the insured person himself is the beneficiary of the policy, in which case it will be redeemed while the insured person is still alive.
This question of who can be the beneficiary brings a confusion of understanding, because what many are unaware of is that this favored person(s) is a choice solely of the insured person, and he is free to nominate whoever he wants.
In short, the life insurance beneficiary:
- It is explicit in the policy;
- Free choice of the insured
- It can be the insured
- It can be a family member, relative or no parental relationship
How do I know if I am a life insurance beneficiary?
This is a doubt that explodes at the worst moment in many people’s lives, but even if you’re not sure there are ways to resolve this situation.
In this search, you must first make sure that there is insurance taken out by the deceased person. Here are some steps that will help you, see below how to proceed:
- Talk to the family’s insurance agent, if there is one;
- See if any fixed amount is automatically debited from the person’s bank accounts that are discriminated against as life insurance;
- Check the deceased’s paycheck for any life insurance installment discount;
- Talk to the human resources sector of the company where the person who died worked to find out whether insurance was among the benefits offered;
- Contact the possible insurer.
When you look for an insurer who suspects the existence of life insurance, take some documents to help with the search, and if confirmed, submit them, there may be a need for others, but basically these are:
- CPF
- identification document
- Death certificate
However, even if it is a difficult subject to deal with, it is right for the insured person to inform his beneficiaries of the existence of life insurance, as well as to leave all documents separate, this speeds up the process.
The main document is the insurance policy or certificate, in which you will find the primary information, such as: effective date, contracted amount and, in this case, the name of the beneficiary(ies).
In Brazil there is the Susep (Superintendence of Private Insurance), which is an Autarchy of Federal Public Administration, responsible for authorizing, controlling and supervising the insurance, open private pension, capitalization and reinsurance markets in Brazil.
According to Susep, the Operations Registration System (SRO) is being implemented. This will be a customer service channel, where people with questions can make their queries. The system will be available until December/2022.
When there is no declared beneficiary
This is a very remote hypothesis, in cases of private life insurance, since, as we have seen, it is part of the contract with the insurer to determine the beneficiaries.
However, in some forms of life insurance, such as those that are made in a group, for example, which do not have this entire process.
When this occurs, the court advises that Article 792 of the Brazilian Civil Code be followed , which provides for a division to be made between the spouse and the heirs, in this case the children. 50% for the spouse and 50% for the children.
If there is any disagreement, it will be necessary to follow article 1.829 of the Brazilian Civil Code , which deals with the succession of heirs.
Here you saw how to find out if I am a life insurance beneficiary. These steps are important to receive the protection that has been left to you. If you haven’t taken out your insurance, look for Buy Security Seguros today , a serious company where you will find the security your family deserves.
