According to the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI), U.S. citizens hold a collective $1.3 trillion in life insurance coverage, with $21 billion paid out to beneficiaries in 2016. This paints a picture of financial security for the millions who have chosen life insurance as a safety net for their families. Unfortunately, not all beneficiaries experience this financial stability. For some, a life insurance claim denial can turn a time of grief into one of frustration and confusion.
You Can Fight Denial of Life Insurance Benefits
When your life insurance claim is denied, it can be emotionally and financially devastating. If you were relying on the benefits to support your family, the denial may leave you feeling hopeless. Even if life insurance proceeds aren’t absolutely critical, it can still be deeply unsettling to see the hard-earned premiums go to waste and know that the deceased’s intention to protect their loved ones hasn’t been honored.
The good news is that a life insurance denial is not the final word. With the help of an experienced life insurance attorney, you can fight back and potentially secure the benefits you are entitled to. You don’t have to accept a denial without exploring your options.
Life Insurance Claims May Be Wrongly Denied
A denial letter from a life insurance company does not always mean you are ineligible for benefits. Insurers sometimes make mistakes, misinterpret policy terms, or even unjustifiably deny claims. Some of the most common situations where you might still receive life insurance benefits, despite an initial denial, include:
Material Misstatements: The insurer may deny coverage based on a “material misstatement,” but if the error or omission on the application was minor and didn’t actually affect the coverage, this could be overturned.
Missed Premium Payments: If the insurance company claims that a policy lapsed due to a missed premium payment, but the beneficiary can demonstrate that payments were made or the lapse was unjustified, this could be challenged.
Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Policies: Sometimes, insurers wrongly determine that the cause of death wasn’t accidental, even though it fits the terms of the AD&D policy.
Exclusion Clauses: The insurer may claim that the cause of death falls under an exclusion in the policy terms, but this interpretation can often be disputed.
These justifications for denial may sound convincing in the denial letter from the insurance company, but keep in mind that the insurer doesn’t have the final say on matters like the interpretation of policy terms, the cause of death, or whether a misstatement is truly “material.”
In fact, insurance companies frequently classify minor flaws in the application as “material misstatements” or determine the cause of death without proper evidence. We have successfully helped many beneficiaries secure their full life insurance benefits, even in cases where the insurer claimed the policy had lapsed or that the cause of death was excluded.
A Life Insurance Claim Denial Attorney Can Help
If you’ve been wrongfully denied life insurance benefits or aren’t sure whether you have a valid claim, contact an attorney with experience in life insurance denial cases. The laws surrounding life insurance claims can be complicated, especially when ERISA (the Employment Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) applies to policies offered as employee benefits.
ERISA is a federal law that supersedes state laws and introduces its own set of rules, which makes it crucial to work with an attorney familiar with the complexities of life insurance law and ERISA regulations.
Many life insurance attorneys do not have the specific knowledge required to handle life insurance denial cases effectively. Our life insurance lawyers have a proven track record of securing benefits for beneficiaries, and we are prepared to fight for you.
If your life insurance claim has been denied, contact us now to learn more about how we can help you recover the benefits you’re entitled to.