Investing in life insurance is an excellent way to protect your loved ones after you die. However, it is common to experience problems with life insurance. Maybe your husband passed away, and he had not changed the beneficiary on his life insurance policy. Now the insurance company intends to pay out the benefits to his first wife. You may not find it fair, and you are wondering whether it is too late to do something about the issue. Other situations may also create problems with life insurance policies. When such cases occur, you may feel desperate. This article focuses on how you can fight a life insurance policy.
Challenging a life insurance policy is complicated. The policy is an agreement between the insured person and the insurance company. As such, it is rare and hard for a third party to prove that the beneficiary or the insured person is on the wrong. A life insurance settlement does not go through probate as it happens in a will. As a result, you cannot find any automatic court scrutiny document. You cannot achieve much by contacting the insurance company. The only way you can fight a life insurance issue when the policyholder is dead is through a court of law.
The first thing you can do to solve a life insurance problem is to prevent it from occurring. Encourage your family member to review the policy regularly, especially when a life-changing event happens. For instance, if you are blessed with another child, you can ask your husband to examine his life insurance policy. By doing this, you make sure that the money goes to whoever was supposed to benefit.
If you reach a certain point where you must go to court, hire a life insurance lawyer who is an expert in contesting life insurance beneficiary. Look for an attorney who will not recommend you to take the first settlement. Choose an expert who is ready to represent you in court if the insurance company cannot offer fair compensation.
You also have to consider the time sensitivity of your action. Ideally, you have to challenge the policy before the insurance company pays out to the listed beneficiary. The insurance company can decide to pay the policy any time the beneficiary files a claim. However, if there is a legal dispute, the insurance company can wait until the matter is settled or payout to trust held by the court. If the named beneficiary has already received the amount, you will need to file a lawsuit against that individual. If the individual has already spent the money, and he or she has no assets, it may be challenging to collect the whole amount.
You can also look for evidence of fraud or any undue influence. A court of law will set aside a named beneficiary if there is proof of fraud, undue influence, or mental incompetency. Even though it is difficult to prove such practices, it is not impossible.
Remember to always work with a life insurance attorney when fighting a life insurance problem.
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