How to claim in life insurance policy

How to claim in life Insurance policy

How to claim in life Insurance policy

Life insurance covers the risk of loss of income to the family of the insured in the event of his death. The family or nominee of the insured is required is carry out the mandated procedure to receive insurance claim. Here are the steps that need to be followed.

Inform the agent

It is the responsibility of the insurance agent to assist the bereaved family with the claim process by providing policy details and documentation. Hence the first step is to inform the agent about the death of the insured.

Claim intimation

The nominee needs to inform the insurance company about the death of the insured as soon as possible. The claim intimation should cary details like date, place and cause of death.

Claim form

Once the death intimation is made to the insurance company. It will record the same and ask the claimants to fill up a death claim form and submit it along with a list of documents.

The requisite documents are:

• Death certificate
• Original policy document
• Deed of assignment, if any
• Discharge form

If no information has been made, the claimant is required to attach proof that he is legally entitled to make the claim.

Process

The Insurance company will verify the claim and may for additional documents. If the insurer is satisfied with the genuineness for the claim, it will inform the claimant accordingly and pay the death claim amount.

Point to note:

• Claim intimation can be made bu any relative of the insured, even if they are not a nominee of assignee.
• In case of a unit linked insurance plan, the death claim is equivalent to the sum assured or the fund value, whichever is higher.

(The content on this page is courtesy Center for Investment Education and learning (CIEL). Coutributions by Girija Gadre, Arti Bhargava and Labdhi Mehta.)