Do You Have Lost Life Insurance Policy? Easy Locator Tool Now Available

MONTPELIER, Vt., Nov. 22 -- The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (formerly the Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities & Health Care Administration) issued the following news release:

The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) announced Nov. 22, 2016, a national service that provides consumers with search capabilities to help find a deceased person's lost life insurance policies and annuities.

The NAIC's Life Insurance Policy Locator provides nationwide access for assistance with finding life insurance policies and annuities. An estimated $1 billion in benefits from life insurance policies are unclaimed, according to the publication "Consumer Reports."

DFR Commissioner Michael S. Pieciak said this tool will help consumers determine if there are any existing life insurance policies or annuities that they may not know about.

"There are many people who don't know where to begin when searching for a lost life insurance policy or annuity," Pieciak said, "The life insurance policy locator streamlines and simplifies the process for consumers and insurance companies."

The online requests are encrypted and secured to maintain confidentiality. The information will be reviewed by participating insurance companies and compared with available policyholder information. All matches will be reported to DFR before the insurance companies notify beneficiaries or their authorized representatives.

In 2015, life insurers paid more than $74 billion in insurance policy benefits to consumers nationwide. Since 2010, state insurance regulators have investigated unclaimed life insurance benefits. To date, nearly 23 regulatory actions have resulted in returning more than $6.75 billion life insurance proceeds to consumers nationwide.

For more information, contact the DFR Insurance Division at 800-964-1784 or https://eapps.naic.org/life-policy-locator

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