Money arrives strangely after a death - or fails to, strangely. There is often more coverage than anyone knew about, sitting in policies your person never mentioned. Worth an hour of looking, even months later.
Where cover hides
- Life insurance proper: standalone policies, but also ones bundled into mortgages (often paying the mortgage off entirely) and bank accounts
- Employer benefits: many jobs carry "death in service" cover worth several times salary, plus pension death benefits - one call to their HR answers it
- Funeral plans and burial policies, sometimes prepaid decades ago; check the paperwork drawer before paying for anything the plan already covers
- Accident or travel policies, if the death was accidental - and unions, professional bodies, and credit cards sometimes carry quiet cover too
Claiming, in practice
- The phrase: "I'm calling to make a claim on a policy. The policyholder has died. What do you need from me?" - they handle this daily; let them lead
- You'll need death certificates. Order more official copies than you think - everyone wants an original
- Note the deadlines: some policies and benefits have claim windows. This is the one piece of admin worth doing sooner rather than later
- If a claim is refused, ask for the reason in writing; refusals get overturned more often than people expect, and every jurisdiction has an insurance ombudsman or regulator for exactly this
None of this is financial advice - one session with a local adviser is worth this whole page. But don't let the word "insurance" make you assume there's nothing. Frequently there is, and it was them, providing for you, one last time.