by wdoan1 » Thu Jul 01, 2010 01:09 am
My father in law passed away in florida and we have been told that there is no will. His third wife's family is stating that the life insurance policy that he paid for since 1948 goes to her but his son's mother is named the beneficiary. We paid 11000.00 for the funeral and they still want the small policy but we have been told that there was a prenup that stated anything aquired after the marriage goes to the surviving spouse. Obviously this was purchased before their marriage. What recorce do we have
Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 03:57 am Post Subject:
Your resource is the policy. Insurance contracts are just that contracts. The insurance company will pay the listed beneficiary. The amount of legal fees required to fight this would most likely outweigh the the benefit of receiving the life insurance death benefit. Send the death certificate to the insurance company and they'll send the check to the beneficiary.
Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 10:37 am Post Subject:
I do understand how tough it is when you need to pay 11000.
We paid 11000.00 for the funeral and they still want the small policy but we have been told that there was a prenup that stated anything aquired after the marriage goes to the surviving spouse.
Did they come up with any proof of such a prenup?
Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 12:48 am Post Subject:
As BNTRS stated, the life insurance policy is the contract (of recourse) here. The carrier will pay the designated beneficiary as stated in the life insurance contract, and that's that. Pure and simple. A will cannot overturn or change the designated beneficiary. Unless the plaintiff can prove duress or fraud in the naming of the beneficiary, and that's almost impossible to prove, the proceeds from the life policy will be paid as designated in the company's records.
There's always the ability to sue for anything...this is America and we hold that right sacred. :roll: The likelihood of success? Pretty much nil. There is ample (read: boatloads) of precedent on this.
InsTeacher 8)
Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 04:05 am Post Subject: insurance
I'm a bit confused, about the thread. I understand that the funeral was alot of money. But...did the money come out of the Life Insurance? I'm getting the impression (maybe the INORRECT impression) that the money was 'out of pocket'.
Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 02:04 pm Post Subject:
We paid for the life insurance out of pocket and the original beneficary is deceased (His mother) They are stating that no contigent beneficiary is named (insurance policy was taken out two months before he was born) We paid out of pocket for the funeral. The funeral home in Florida would not let us assign and she wouldn't acknowledge anything. They have us as reporting the death on the death certificate.
Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 05:57 am Post Subject:
wheel came off of our car just minutes after picking up from body shop. The wheel was directly below the quarter panel they repaired. They claim its not their problem.
If this is the case, the proceeds will be paid to the [estate of] the policyowner. Assuming the insured was the owner, then the proceeds will be up for grabs along with all other estate assets among persons of kinship (blood line, not marriage) according to most states' probate laws.
A person who has paid for the funeral of the decedent may have a superior claim to estate assets, of which the insurance proceeds may be a part.
Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 04:33 pm Post Subject: insurance
The decent think to do is to pay the person/people, who paid for the funeral 'out of pocket', with the Insurance money. I've seen Life Insurance policies 'tear up' families and make 'simple' things impossible to deal with. It's really sad. :(
Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 11:33 pm Post Subject:
The decent think to do is . . . .
While it may be the "decent thing", when "things" end up in Probate Court, all bets are off. Matters are now under the control of the judge and guided by state law. Neither of those necessarily have the decedent's or heirs' best interests at heart.
Although funeral claims have a high priority (no one wants a dead body lying around above ground), they are not the highest in the list. If all of the available assets, including life insurance proceeds, are consumed by other claims with priority, so be it.
Proper estate planning, proper and up to date beneficiary designations, wills, and trusts all serve to prevent the kind of turmoil being experienced in this OP's post and those of other posters that are similar.
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