Dear Mr. Berko: My sister and I had a love-hate relationship with our father for the last 10 years of his life. He died last year at age 69. After Mom’s death in 2006, we had good times and bad times together. He told my sister and me many times over those 10 years about a $500,000 life insurance policy that would be divided evenly between us. But it’s been a year, and we can’t find that policy. We’ve searched all over for it. Do you have any ideas or suggestions? We’re frantic.
— N.K., Buffalo, N.Y.
Dear N.K.: Of course you are!
I assume that you’ve checked all his drawers, estate papers, files and safe-deposit boxes and even dug up the backyard. Seeing as that has turned up diddly squat, call your dad’s insurance agent — the person who sold him his auto, homeowners and health policies. If that turns out to be a goose egg, then ask his former employer. Oftentimes, employers will offer term life insurance policies at very attractive rates to their employees. If that fails, then you might check with your dad’s accountant and ask what interest expenses or interest income was included in your dad’s tax returns, as some life insurance policies have investment accounts. And if you think that your dad purchased a life insurance policy through Aetna, Prudential or the like, you can call claims offices. The people there will acknowledge whether they have a policy on your dad’s life. And they should tell you without requiring proof of a father-child relationship.
If all that fails and you still have energy remaining, get thee in touch with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, which is a regulatory agency for the insurance industry. It’s risible and toothless, but several years ago, the NAIC created the Life Insurance Policy Locator Service. You can find it online. A “helpful person” there will poll its member list of nearly 500 insurance companies. Each company will search its records for any life insurance policies in your dad’s name. So, if good fortune smiles and a policy is found, that “helpful person” will notify you. However, that “helpful person” will need information from you supporting your affiliation with the deceased before any pertinent information can be released.
Sometimes an insurance benefit is turned over to the state in which the policy was purchased. This possibility will require another search, and this one will be laborious. The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators’ website has links to all state programs that allow you to do a free search online. There are 50 states, so let your fingers do the clicking on the keyboard.
