$148M In Life Insurance Benefits Located For Tennesseans Through Free Service

Greeneville Sun, The (TN)

The Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) has announced that insurance policies totaling $148.1 million were located in 2023 for Tennesseans through the Life Insurance Policy Locator Service.

Developed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the Life Insurance Policy Locator Service is a free service that enables beneficiaries, executors, or legal representatives of a deceased person to locate life insurance policies and annuity contracts of their late family members, clients or friends.

"Life insurance policies are intended by their purchasers to help cover the financial burdens such as medical bills, funeral costs, and other financial obligations that can occur after you lose a loved one," said TDCI Commissioner Carter Lawrence. "It's my sincerest hope that the Life Insurance Policy Locator Service helps ease the burden that family members and loved ones may face after the death of a loved one, and I am grateful that the NAIC created this process."

During the nearly 12-month period from Jan. 1, 2023, to Dec. 31, 2023, the service matched 3,570 life insurance policies with $148,162,793 in benefits for Tennesseans.

For those looking for a loved one's lost policy, TDCI recommends starting by looking through papers or financial records to search for payments made to an insurance company. If any of the documents reference payments made to an insurance company, you can call them directly to see if a policy can be located.

You can also complete NAIC's online Life Insurance Policy Locator Service request form at https://eapps.naic.org/life-policy-locator/#/welcome . Once the request is complete, NAIC will send the policyholder's information to all licensed life insurance companies across the United States. Then, companies will check their records to determine if they have a policy matching the beneficiary's information.

The company will respond within 60 days if a match is found. If a company finds a match, they will respond directly to the requestor if you are designated beneficiary or are legally authorized to receive such information.

The service does not track beneficiary information or claim payment after matches are reported so there is no way to determine the amount actually returned to consumers. The total claim amount only includes the amount reported by companies tied to a match.

For more information on the Lost Policy Service and other consumer insurance resources, contact the TDCI Consumer Insurance Service Division at 1-800-342-4029 or 615-741-2218.