When a Life Insurance Company Wrongfully Assumes Suicide
Losing a loved one is one of the most difficult experiences in life. The emotional weight is heavy enough—but when you’re the surviving spouse or partner, you also have to manage a list of critical tasks in the midst of that grief. Filing a life insurance claim is often one of the first administrative responsibilities.
Ideally, notifying the insurer and submitting the required paperwork would result in a swift payout. But that’s not how the life insurance industry typically operates. These are for-profit corporations, and the fewer claims they pay, the more profit they generate. The unfortunate reality is that many valid claims are denied based on flimsy, speculative, or outright unfair reasons.
Shame-Based Claim Denials: The Suicide Assumption
Some life insurers go even further. To deter families from contesting denials, they attach shameful implications—none more emotionally charged than alleging the insured committed suicide. Even in the face of clear evidence that the death was accidental or due to illness, life insurers may raise the suicide exclusion to delay or reject a claim.
This tactic was at the center of one recent case, where a grieving widow was forced to defend her late husband’s character and religious beliefs in order to receive the benefits he left behind for her.
A Faithful Man and a Painful Diagnosis
Don and Shirley had been married for over 50 years. They were devout Christians who lived their lives according to Biblical teachings, including the belief that suicide was morally and spiritually wrong. As they grew older, they had conversations about death, created Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders, and made clear to friends and family that neither of them would ever do anything to intentionally end their own life.
Don was later diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer that caused unbearable abdominal pain. Though he was prescribed strong narcotics, he took them sparingly to stay mentally alert. Eventually, doctors informed the couple that Don’s time was short. He asked to return home to die peacefully in his own bed.
One afternoon, while Shirley stepped out to buy groceries, Don passed away in his recliner. A police report noted several prescription bottles near his body and stated that 25 pills were missing. The coroner confirmed that Don died from complications of his disease and noted the presence of narcotics, but offered no conclusion about whether they contributed to his death.
The Life Insurance Company Made a Harsh Assumption
After Don’s death, Shirley filed a claim with the life insurance company that administered Don’s $500,000 union-provided policy. She submitted all requested documents, including the death certificate and the official reports. What she received in return was shocking.
The insurer sent a letter stating that Don’s death was “suspicious” and might have been a suicide. Since the policy had a suicide exclusion clause, they were launching an investigation that could delay or deny the claim. The suggestion infuriated Shirley, who knew her husband would never have taken his own life, especially after all their discussions on the matter.
A Specialized Attorney Makes the Difference
A neighbor happened to be present when Shirley received the letter and referred her to a relative—Ken, an attorney who specialized in denied life insurance claims. He immediately understood the urgency. If he could intervene before a formal denial was issued, Shirley would be spared a long, bureaucratic appeals process.
Ken moved quickly. He obtained sworn statements from Don’s doctor confirming the pain levels and the prescribed dosage. He also interviewed the couple’s pastor, family members, and close friends—each of whom testified that Don’s faith would never allow him to consider suicide. One even said Don had referred to suicide as “a rejection of God’s gift of life.”
Ken compiled all of this into a compelling evidence packet and submitted it to the life insurer’s claims department. Less than a week later, Shirley received full payment from the policy.
Don’t Wait to Take Action
What happened to Shirley is more common than most people realize. Insurers routinely stretch definitions and assumptions in order to avoid paying high-dollar claims. In this case, they used the suicide exclusion as a convenient excuse—even when there was no actual evidence of suicide.
If you’ve received a claim denial or if an insurer has hinted that your claim might be contested due to suicide, drug use, or other ambiguous reasoning, you need legal help immediately. A specialized life insurance attorney can intervene before a formal denial, compile the necessary documentation, and apply pressure that ensures your loved one’s final wishes are honored.
We Fight for Families Like Yours
Our firm has spent years helping families navigate the difficult process of contesting wrongful life insurance claim denials. We don’t charge anything up front. If we take your case, we only get paid if and when we recover money on your behalf. Let us stand between you and an insurance company that refuses to do the right thing. Call today—we’re here to help.