Life insurance companies can deny or delay claims due to various reasons, such as if there is a lapsed policy or the policyholder wasn’t aware of certain exclusions. These can be stressful to deal with when you’re grieving a loss, but you can dispute the denied claim.
If you find yourself dealing with a life insurance dispute, you’ll want to take certain steps to resolve it quickly so that you can receive your benefits promptly and reduce your financial losses.
Read the rest of this article to learn about common life insurance disputes, how to resolve them, how to prevent them, and when you should hire a lawyer for assistance.
What are Common Causes of Life Insurance Disputes?
Although life insurance companies can deny or delay a claim for various reasons, the most common ones include the following:
- Unpaid premiums. If the policyholder hasn’t been paying their monthly premiums on time, this can cause the policy to lapse. The company might not have informed the policyholder of the missed payments or given them a grace period in which to pay it.
- Misrepresentation. Since life insurance policies can be highly detailed, the policyholder might have forgotten to provide specific details regarding their health, job, or other information.
- Exclusions. Some life insurance policies won’t cover specific events, such as death by suicide or drug use.
- Period of contestability. Life insurance policies have what’s known as a period of contestability, that’s typically a two-year span. If the person insured by the policy passes away during this time, the insurance company could find reasons to deny the claim.
If you’re a beneficiary, you can challenge denied claims to receive your benefits.
How Should You Deal with a Life Insurance Dispute?
To ensure you can resolve the query or dispute quickly, you should follow these steps.
Ask the Insurer for an Explanation
You have a right to ask the insurance company to explain why they are denying your claim. They need to provide you with an explanation that’s clear and specific. If you receive an answer from them but it doesn’t provide clarity, you should follow-up with more questions.
Request Appeal Information
What is the insurance company’s appeal process? You should ask them about this so that you can increase your chances of getting your claim paid. Ask the insurance company for the paperwork you need to file an appeal and check appeal deadlines so you don’t miss them.
Work with a Lawyer
Although you can go through the appeal process on your own, this isn’t recommended. Working with a lawyer who has knowledge about the process and what’s required will ensure you have a successful experience and meet all your deadlines.
They’ll also help you collect the appropriate documentation for the appeal, such as the death certificate, insurance policy, and proof of paid premiums. These will support your case and help to prove that the insurance company doesn’t have a right to deny the claim.
You can contact a lawyer on ContractsCounsel, an online legal network that connects clients with lawyers. They make the process of finding a lawyer for a life insurance dispute convenient and stress-free. All lawyers on the platform are vetted and have experience in assisting clients with insurance claims and disputes.
Follow Up with the Insurance Company
Dealing with an insurance company for a denied death benefit claim can be stressful and frustrating, especially if their responses are delayed.
It’s important to continue following up with them for updates so that you stay the course. Keep a record of all communication so that you have proof of this should you need to take your dispute further.
How Can a Lawyer Help You With a Life Insurance Dispute?
We’ve already outlined how a lawyer can assist you with the claim appeal process, but lawyers can provide you with other help during a life insurance dispute. This includes:
- Using their knowledge of insurance laws in your state to strengthen your rights and position.
- Contesting the denial by the life insurance company by presenting evidence and investigating the denied claim on your behalf.
- Putting pressure on the life insurance company to take action to rectify the issue.
- Reviewing your life insurance policy so that it’s easy to understand and provides clarity on why the claim was denied.
- Guiding you on your best options, such as appealing the denied claim.
How Can You Prevent a Life Insurance Dispute?
Understanding what life insurance companies need to process claims can help you avoid situations where they’re denied or the company is taking a long time to send you an urgent payout.
Here are some things that can help you prevent a life insurance dispute in the future.
- Set up automated premium payments. This will ensure that you don’t miss any monthly payments that could cause your policy to lapse.
- Ensure your policy application is genuine and honest. You need to disclose all health information and requested details so that the policy is valid and your claims can be paid out in a timely way.
- Update your policy. When life events result in changed personal details, such as moving to a new home address or changing your surname after getting married, you need to inform the life insurance policy about them.
- Include beneficiaries in the process. To prevent hassles for your beneficiaries after you pass away, let your beneficiaries have access to your insurance policy documents. Inform them of the claim-filing process so they won’t encounter issues.
- Keep all documents. Ensure you organize all your life insurance documents in a safe place, with copies (both print and digital). This will prevent the issue of missing documentation when filing a claim.
Do you need a life insurance lawyer?
If you need to challenge a denied claim by your life insurance company, you should contact a lawyer on ContractsCounsel. With their years of experience, excellent credentials, and strong work ethic, they’ll give you peace of mind while supporting your case so you can receive payment for your death benefit claim.
