There have been so many instances in India where people have been unaware of insurance policies that they can make a claim on. This mostly happens when they have no knowledge about insurance covers that were actually held by their parents or grandparents. These claims, hence, get missed once the policyholder passes away and get categorised under unclaimed insurances.
The good news here is that there’s a provision to claim such unclaimed insurance amounts.
Bonus Read: Death Claim: Documents Required For A Life Insurance Claim
What Is An Unclaimed Amount?
Every policy has a due date when the claim is to be made. If nobody has claimed the settlement amount for more than six months after the due date, then it goes under the category of the unclaimed amount. Money due to be paid to the policyholder upon death, maturity, or in a form of premium and other benefits can be categorised as an unclaimed amount.
How To Hunt For An Unclaimed Insurance Policy
Part 1
How can you find out whether or not you have an unclaimed insurance policy hidden away somewhere? The hunting process might be a little too tedious and you might have to hunt for some old insurance documents. Don’t give up!
Even if you have to clear a few spider webs and open that old cupboard that has always looked haunted, remember, once you find that hidden treasure, hunting through all this dust will seem to be fruitful. Don’t forget to cover other not so dusty areas while looking. These include old pen drives, email addresses or laptops.
Additional Reading: 7 Types of Health Insurance Plans
Part 2
To make the hunt easier for you, insurance companies also provide you with the facility to search for unclaimed insurance policies on their websites. All you need is some basic details of the policy and the policyholder. These include the name and date of birth of the policyholder. You might also need some other information like the PAN and policy number of the policyholder. However, if the unclaimed amount is less than Rs. 1,000, it won’t be displayed on the website.
If you are in luck and you find the right documents, give a call to the insurance company concerned. They might ask you to submit a copy of the policy holder’s death certificate unless the case is more complicated than that.
Found the right documents? It’s time to get to the real problem now.
Bonus Read: What Is Claim-Settlement Ratio?
How To Get The Unclaimed Insurance Amount
To get the unclaimed money, you need to enter some basic details like the policy number, PAN, name and date of birth on the insurer’s website. If the entered information matches the insurer’s database, then you can get to see the name and address of the policyholder against whom any unclaimed amount is lying.
Upon locating the unclaimed amount, the insurer can be approached in order to make a claim. For all new policies issued, insurers have to take the bank account details of the policyholder.
The bank details of the nominee are required for a Term Insurance policy, in the case of a death claim. The policyholder doesn’t need to furnish bank details if the bank account is not linked to RBI’s core-banking solutions. Cooperative or regional rural banks are yet to get the full benefits of core banking.
Additional Reading: All About Home Insurance
How To Receive The Payment
Simple! Just provide your bank details and the money will be transferred to your account. Once you furnish all the required policy details and your bank account details, along with your ID proof, of course, the unclaimed insurance amount is directly transferred to the given account through RTGS, IMPS or NEFT.
A Quick Check
You will have to submit the policy papers and proof of bank account details, such as cancelled cheque. If you are looking to claim insurance for a Term Life Policy, you will have to verify your details as a nominee.
Bonus Read: Your Guide To Joint Life Insurance
There you have it. All you need to know about getting your unclaimed insurance money.
If you’re looking to acquire a Life Insurance, Health Insurance, Car Insurance, Two-Wheeler Insurance or Cancer Care plan, you’ve come to the right place.