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I am the nominated beneficiary of my partner's life insurance. There is no estate, just debt left behind. The insurance company will not pay me even though they're not disputing that I'm nominated sole beneficiary. In fact, during our last phone conversation they stated "we know you are the beneficiary but because of the amount, we are making you go though probate."

My partner and I have a 13 year old girl with mental heath issues solely deriving from her dad's death. This is backed up by the mental heath team and a psychiatrist. I've been told by family and friends who witnessed phone conversations between me and the insurance company that they have taken advantage of my mental state (which I am receiving medical help with) and the insurance company are aware of.

How can I get the insurance company to pay out the benefit to me?

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    Simply contact an attorney, or contact the free legal aid service in your city or county. Nobody on an internet site would be able to help. If you're struggling to find legal aid, start at your local Church and have them direct you to legal aid. Good luck! – Fattie Nov 25 '16 at 13:43
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    I'm sorry for your loss. I'm not sure what you want us to tell you exactly, I think you need help from a professional to read and understand clearly the contract with the insurance company and see if they are breaching it. If it's the case, you might need a lawyer to convince them to pay up. – Rémi Nov 25 '16 at 13:45
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    Donna - Welcome to Money.SE. Please add a location (country) tag to your question. People from all over the world are more than welcome here, but often, without knowing the country, an answer might be US-centric, and not really apply to you. – JTP - Apologise to Monica♦ Nov 25 '16 at 14:46
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    I'm sorry for your loss, don't worry about the money because, if my reading is correct, they aren't denying you the money but asking that you go through the probate process to receive it. It may seem daunting but it is a necessary process in many cases, especially where large sums of money are involved. – MD-Tech Nov 25 '16 at 16:04
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    It sounds like they are simply asking that the legal formalities be followed. What's the problem? – Loren Pechtel Nov 26 '16 at 3:30
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First of all, the company will pay the money for the insurance, do not be afraid. They have to pay IF 1) the insurance premium was paid every month and 2) there was not a false declaration of health when the contract was signed 5 or 10 years ago. It normally takes between 1 month and 4 months to settle an insurance contract. Your case might take a little longer.

Second, the insurance company admit that you are the beneficiary, so the money will eventually come to you. What they say is that you need someone in charge, a trustee or a curatorship to handle the money in your name. Why? Because you have a mental health team in charge of you. Be patient, and...

Third, start by talking to someone in charge in your mental health team or the people you see. What you need is someone acting as a trustee for you. You need to go and seek free legal aid. Depending on your country or state of residence.

I cannot help you more than that. You will have the money, eventually in a few months, but you need to find a trustee, a guardian as soon as possible. Someone in your family could easily do it for you ?

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  • Quite. The key point is, "You need to go and seek free legal aid" – Fattie Nov 26 '16 at 12:05
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    Armando, I don't think the beneficiary's mental state is the reason. If the policy was owned by the deceased, and is large enough to trigger estate taxes (possibly by the state, rather than federal), that can force the entire estate into probate. – mkennedy Nov 26 '16 at 20:24

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