Last Updated: August 2019
If you’re going to rely on the life insurance company to take care of your family financially when you’re not around anymore, then you want to make darn sure they will pay and that a death claim will not be denied.
It leaves a lot of life insurance consumers curious if life insurance companies can deny a death claim and what reasons they can use to do so.
The rest of this brief article will detail how and why a life insurance company can decide not to pay a death claim:
- The 2 Ways Life Insurance Will Deny A Death Claim
- Life Insurance Being Expensive Is A Common Myth Much Like Companies Denying Death Claims
- Work With An Independent Broker To Obtain The Best Life Insurance Policies
Life Insurance is Boring. Let’s Get To The Root Of It! Here are the key takeaways…
Life insurance companies can only deny a death claim for two reasons. Life insurance companies can deny a death claim if you commit suicide within the first 2 years of your policy and can deny a death claim if false information was provided and you were to pass away within the first two years of the policy.
The 2 Ways Life Insurance Will Deny A Death Claim
There are only 2 reasons why a life insurance company WILL NOT pay a death claim:
1. Life Insurance Suicide Clause. If you purchase a policy and within the first 2 years you commit suicide, the life insurance company will not pay. However, after 2 years they will pay the full benefit. This is to ensure that people don’t purchase a life insurance policy, and then commit suicide just to their family now has the face value of the insurance policy.
2. Life Insurance Contestability Clause. If you provide inaccurate information on the application and you pass away within 2 years of the policy being in force, the life insurance company can deny your claim. If the life insurer hasn’t rescinded the policy after 2 years, they CANNOT deny a claim. Everything is covered after the first 2 years.
For Example:
A stunt pilot who knows they will receive a better individual life insurance rate by lying to the life insurance company about his occupation and omits this information from the application.
The life insurance company has every right to deny his claim if he passes away within the first 2 years of the policy. After 2 years, there is nothing they can do.
If you’re honest on the application and not planning on taking your own life, you have nothing to worry about.
These are the ONLY 2 circumstances a life insurance company will not pay. In every other case, the insurance company has to pay out for your plan.
If you’re worried about purchasing a plan and the company not paying out because of some loophole or clause, don’t fear.
You’ve probably heard stories or rumors about someone passing away unexpectedly, and the insurance company refused to pay the family the payout from the policy because of some vague or shady reason.
These simply aren’t true.
More than likely, there were some details that weren’t included in the story and the insurance company had a legitimate reason for denying the coverage as the person lied on the insurance application.
Life Insurance Being Expensive Is A Common Myth Much Like Companies Denying Death Claims
Another common myth of life insurance is the price.
Aside from the fear of being denied a claim, other applicants assume they don’t have the money for the monthly payments.
We have good news, it’s probably cheaper than you think.
Imagine if something fatal happened to you.
Your family would have to pay your mortgage, car loans, student loans, business loans, funeral expenses, and much more.
They can quickly find themselves up to their necks in unpaid expenses, but that’s where a life insurance policy comes in.
You don’t have to worry about the insurance company paying out the coverage if you passed away.
As long as it’s after those first two years, your family will get the money and they can use it to get through a difficult time.
One of the most common reasons that households don’t have life insurance is because of the costs, most applicants assume that coverage would be too expenses and they won’t be able to afford it.
In most cases, a life insurance policy is cheaper than you might think.
A Few Tricks Can Help You Obtain Life Insurance Quickly
Making a few changes can get you the lowest rates for your insurance coverage.
The first is to focus on your health.
Unless you choose a no exam policy, your health will determine how much you pay for the plan.
The insurance carrier will schedule a paramedic or nurse to come to your house or work to complete a medical exam.
The exam is going to give them an idea of your health, which will be used to calculate how much of a risk you are to insure.
If you want to get better rates, you’ll need to improve your health through diet and exercise and pull yourself out of the category of high-risk life insurance.
Both of these are going to lower your blood pressure, lose weight, and lower your heart rate.
These are all going to give you better results form the physical, and lower your chances of having severe health complications which are going to save you money on premiums.
Another way to improve your health is to quit smoking or using tobacco.
Smokers get a completely different set of rates.
Much higher ones.
Work With An Independent Broker To Obtain The Best Life Insurance Policies
After 2 years, anything and everything is covered by your policy. These are the only 2 reasons a claim on life insurance has ever been denied.
We get a lot of applicants who hear about these untrue rumors.
Most of these customers are scared their families won’t get the payout they deserve.
This keeps some people from buying life insurance.
Don’t make these mistakes.
The best way to ensure that you’re getting the lowest insurance rates is to partner with an independent broker.
Our independent agents don’t only represent one single company, which means that we can give you unbiased advice and connect you with the perfect and affordable policy.
If you have any questions about claims being denied, or you’re ready to shop for life insurance, the best thing you can do is call us.
