He is married and his wife also has dementia and was unable to care for him. His wife's sister has POA over her. His wife and her sister were Insurance agents and I know that there are policies on him but his SIL is unwilling to cooperate with me when I try to ask questions. I do not have insurance on my dad and my question is what will I do if my dad passes away. How can I find out what policies are out there? Is there some type of insurance registry that provides info on who is insured. It worries me to think that I will get the call that he as passed away and I will not know what to do.
Check with his last employer. If he retired from there with a number of years, they may carry a small policy on him. Do you know which insurance company his wife worked for? Call them and ask if Dad has a policy thru them. Do you have POA, then u have a right to know.
Even if Dad dies with a policy, the beneficiary gets the proceeds and is not obligated to use the money for his funeral or bills. I think the wife may be but no one else.
Guestshopadmin Oct 2016
I found an article a while ago and made a copy of suggestions. Here you go:
1. Look for Insurance Related Documents
Search through files, bank safe deposit boxes and other storage places to see if there are any insurance related documents. Also, check address books for the names of any insurance professionals or companies—an agent or company who sold the deceased their auto or home insurance may know about the existence of a life insurance policy.
2. Contact Financial Advisors
Present or prior attorneys, accountants, investment advisors, bankers, business insurance agents/brokers and other financial professionals might have information about the deceased’s life insurance policies.
3. Review Life Insurance Applications
The application for each policy is attached to that policy. So if you can find any of the deceased’s life insurance policies, look at the application—will have a list of any other life insurance policies owned at the time of the application.
4. Contact Previous Employers
Former employers maintain records of past group policies.
5. Check Bank Books, Statements and Canceled Checks
See if any checks have been made out to life insurance companies over the years.
6. Check the Mail for a Year Following the Death of the Policyholder
Look for premium notices or dividend notices. If a policy has been paid up, there will no notice of premium payments due; however, the company may still send an annual notice regarding the status of the policy or notice of a dividend.
7. Review the Deceased’s Income Tax Returns for the Past Two Years
Look for interest income from and interest expenses paid to life insurance companies. Life insurance companies pay interest on accumulations on permanent policies and charge interest on policy loans.
8. Contact State Insurance Departments
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has a “Life Insurance Company Location System” to help you find state insurance department officials who can help to identify companies that might have written life insurance on the deceased. The site administrators may delete link but To access that service, go to the NAIC’s https://eapps.naic.org/orphanedpolicy/.
9. Check with the State’s Unclaimed Property Office
If a life insurance company knows that an insured client has died but can’t find the beneficiary, it must turn the death benefit over to the state in which the policy was purchased as “unclaimed property.” If you know (or can guess) where the policy was bought, you can contact the state comptroller’s department to see if it has any unclaimed money from life insurance policies belonging to the deceased. A good place to start is the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administration. Website - https://www.unclaimed.org/ google national association of unclaimed property if link deleted.