OT - Life Insurance claims and your birth Hospital?

[DaddyChoc]

thought I'd put these together just so that I didn't clog up the BY with OT threads!

Question #1 - How do you know you have some money coming to you (or not coming) if the deceased person never told you that you're a beneficiary? Saw a segment on 60 minutes a while ago that insurance companies aren't reaching out to inform you/

Question #2 How can you find out who else was born on the same day as you in the same hospital?

 

[UcMiami]

thought I'd put these together just so that I didn't clog up the BY with OT threads!

Question #1 - How do you know you have some money coming to you (or not coming) if the deceased person never told you that you're a beneficiary? Saw a segment on 60 minutes a while ago that insurance companies aren't reaching out to inform you/

Question #2 How can you find out who else was born on the same day as you in the same hospital?

#1 Some of that falls on the executor of the deceased. Having gone through the executor process twice with my parents, searching through personal papers and tracking down the various sources of death benefits as well discovering whether policies were still in force was one of the rather arduous tasks involved. Being personally connected meant that I was probably much more conscientious than an unconnected 'professional' executor might have been, but ...

NB If you are aware of a relative who has included legacies to individuals from earlier in their life, it is a smart move to start the location of those individuals while the relative is alive. My father left small sums to all his godchildren one of whom had completely disappeared from his circle and another who was estranged from his family. The process of tracking down those two people took about 9 months and delayed the completion of the estate business - the final disposition and filings could not be completed until relatively meaningless sums had been distributed to those two people. My mother was leaving the same kind of legacies, but forewarned we were able to make provisions that eliminated the search process from the handling of her estate.

 

[rbny1]

#1 - I saw the same segment on 60 Minutes and was left with the impression, rightly or wrongly, that some life insurance companies are run by creeps who try to avoid paying benefits to which heirs are legally entitled.

To make life easier for my son when I die (hopefully not for many years), I gave him a written list of all my financial accounts and assets -- credit cards, bank accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance, safe deposit box etc. -- so he doesn't have to search for hidden assets and wonder whether he's missed something. I update the list whenever there's a change.

 

[JordyG]

Being the executor of a will led me to being unpopular among some of my relatives and his surviving friends, and following to the letter my deceased relatives wishes left me even more unpopular. Sometimes as well being the executor of a will reverberates back on you for years to come occasionally making this task a far greater burden than it should have been. List me among that crew.

 

[JimGunther]

Serious question - my non-serious thought

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

#1 - I saw the same segment on 60 Minutes and was left with the impression, rightly or wrongly, that some life insurance companies are run by creeps who try to avoid paying benefits to which heirs are legally entitled.

To make life easier for my son when I die (hopefully not for many years), I gave him a written list of all my financial accounts and assets -- credit cards, bank accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance, safe deposit box etc. -- so he doesn't have to search for hidden assets and wonder whether he's missed something. I update the list whenever there's a change.

My mom recently passed at 97. About when she was in her 70's or so, she started to consolidate some of her bank accounts, most inherited from someone and not really being used. Then, in her mid-80's she brought me on-board as to her assets and consolidated further. Of course, handling her affairs as POA during her mental decline / dementia battle familiarized me with the rest, so that when she died there were only 4 bank accounts, 1 credit card, and 2 insurance policies (not life insurance, just policies to be closed) to be dealt with. Just starting the process.

 

[cabbie191]

Most states have an office for unclaimed money. I believe that financial institutions, in at least some states, are required to report what appear to be dead accounts.

I don't have the URL anymore but I have used a website to check on this, so with some sleuthing, you should be able to find it.

Regarding dealing with estates: I'm lucky because my brothers and I early on developed an agreed upon system to split items that weren't specified in wills. We had several aunts and uncles without children so unfortunately we had to do this often.

On the other hand, my son-in-law's grandmother recently died, and his father is going through h$&@ in splitting up her estate because of how his brother wants to handle things. Needlessly tearing the family apart.

 

[CTexpatinFL]

Most states have an office for unclaimed money. I believe that financial institutions, in at least some states, are required to report what appear to be dead accounts.

Part answer to your question; Most states have Escheatment Laws, after a certain time period any inactive bank accounts, life insurance policies, checks never cashed for accounts payable or payroll, tax returns, etc etc, get turned over the to the various state agencies that hold these monies and publish a list or a notice to go to a specific web site, every year in a local newspaper. In CT, the office that holds these monies is "Connecticut Office Of the State Treasurer - Denise L. Nappier" State Treasurers office.
There are private companies that hunt the owners of these accounts and ask for a portion, unsure how this works. If someone leaves a large amount to someone they can't locate, they can hire a prive detective, etc. With all the info on the internet, it is very hard to hide your whereabouts.
I think the state actually takes over these funds, and then pay them back as a claim is processed.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Being the executor of a will led me to being unpopular among some of my relatives and his surviving friends, and following to the letter my deceased relatives wishes left me even more unpopular. Sometimes as well being the executor of a will reverberates back on you for years to come occasionally making this task a far greater burden than it should have been. List me among that crew.

Jordy, I'll take you off the list of potential executors of my will.

 

[JordyG]

Jordy, I'll take you off the list of potential executors of my will.

Please and thank you. I still have at least one more coming up, as I told you.

 

[DaddyChoc]

#1 - I saw the same segment on 60 Minutes and was left with the impression, rightly or wrongly, that some life insurance companies are run by creeps who try to avoid paying benefits to which heirs are legally entitled.

To make life easier for my son when I die (hopefully not for many years), I gave him a written list of all my financial accounts and assets -- credit cards, bank accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance, safe deposit box etc. -- so he doesn't have to search for hidden assets and wonder whether he's missed something. I update the list whenever there's a change.

yup, that 60 Minutes segment bothered me... the companies arent reaching out. I guess we need to inform loved ones that they are on the policies etc. and hope they dont wack us over the head earlier than expected. Then there will be an episode of Forensic Files

 

[cabbie191]

yup, that 60 Minutes segment bothered me... the companies arent reaching out. I guess we need to inform loved ones that they are on the policies etc. and hope they dont wack us over the head earlier than expected. Then there will be an episode of Forensic Files

Absolutely a must, IMHO, to let your heirs know your plans, etc. Every year we give our children an update as to our insurance policies, what companies we use for investments, retirement policies, and where the documents are located.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Absolutely a must, IMHO, to let your heirs know your plans, etc. Every year we give our children an update as to our insurance policies, what companies we use for investments, retirement policies, and where the documents are located.

yup, guess you must be upfront with everyone... some people dont leave stuff just for the kids, what about the nice Boneyard poster?