To find out if a life insurance policy exists, you can search through personal belongings, check your state’s unclaimed property office, and use locator tools.
Learn how to locate a life insurance policy below.
Updated: October 30, 2025
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To locate a deceased loved one's life insurance policy, search by examining personal records, reviewing bank statements for life insurance payments, contacting former employers and financial advisors. Using the NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator service and checking state unclaimed property databases for any benefits that may have been transferred can also help.
You might be a life insurance beneficiary without knowing it, since policyholders aren't required to inform those they name.
When you find a policy, you'll need documents including the death certificate, proof of relationship to the policyholder and personal identification.
Finding your parent's insurance policy helps settle their affairs and claim any benefits they intended for you. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Life Insurance Policy Locator and similar online tools help families find unknown policies after a parent's death. These resources, along with financial documents and employer contacts, make the search process manageable.
Explore places where your parent likely stored important documents. Look in their home office, personal files or safe. Policies are often kept alongside critical documents like wills, property deeds or financial records. Check physical files and digital records on computers they maintained.
Reach out to professionals involved in your parent's financial matters. Employers can provide information about group life insurance benefits offered through work. Financial advisors, accountants and lawyers who handled financial planning or estate matters may have records or knowledge of existing policies.
Use resources like the NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator, MIB Group or the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) to conduct free searches for unclaimed life insurance money. These organizations help search for lost or forgotten policies. After you submit a request, they'll contact participating insurance companies to search their records. This process typically takes 90 business days or more, as noted by NAIC, but it's a valuable search tool.
Accurate information helps when searching for a deceased person's life insurance policy. Complete details make your search more effective, whether using free resources or services like the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Life Insurance Policy Locator.
You’ll need the following information:
Information | Description |
|---|---|
Full name of the deceased | Ensure you include any maiden names, previous legal names or aliases they may have used for a thorough life insurance policy search by name. |
Social Security number (SSN) | The SSN is an important identifier for most financial and legal documents. You can also find a life insurance policy using an SSN with insurers or government databases. |
Date of birth and death | These dates verify identity and policy details during a life insurance policy check. |
Last known addresses | Insurers often send correspondence to the last-known address of a policyholder, which can assist in finding a life insurance policy or policy updates. |
Employment history | Your loved one may have employer-provided life insurance policies you're unaware of. Knowing their employment history can help you find unclaimed life insurance benefits. |
Financial records | Bank statements may show premium payments to insurance companies, helping you find lost life insurance policies by tracking past transactions. |
Personal contacts | Financial advisors, accountants and lawyers may hold valuable insights. Knowing their names and contact details can help you request life insurance information regarding existing policies. |
Existing insurance documents | Any related insurance paperwork, even if it's not directly for life insurance, can provide leads to old life insurance policies. |
Email and digital account access | Digital correspondence or online policy management may reveal policy updates or payments that can aid your search for life insurance policies. |
Membership in unions or associations | These organizations sometimes offer life insurance benefits to their members. They may also have proof of life insurance benefits. |
This information will streamline your search, allowing you to approach insurance companies, legal professionals and life insurance locator services with the necessary details to uncover any existing life insurance policies.
If primary search methods haven't worked, try these additional approaches to uncover hidden life insurance policies:
Only specific people can request information about a deceased policyholder's life insurance:
The executor is responsible for ensuring that a person's will is followed and that their estate is managed as they wanted.
A deceased person's next of kin is often their spouse or children. Depending on the situation, it may also be the closest living blood relative or an adopted family member.
Any beneficiary on the person's policy, whether a charity, trust, estate or someone else you might not know, should be informed of the policyholder's passing and claim.
If you qualify to request policy information, collect the required details before contacting insurers or search services. Take advantage of free policy locator tools to help in your search. Finding all policies and notifying all beneficiaries helps ensure your loved one's final wishes are properly fulfilled.
A life insurance policy identifies all beneficiaries by name. You're designated as a beneficiary on a life insurance policy if your name appears on the policy. There are no restrictions on who can be named as a beneficiary. A policyholder can select any person, charity, business or trust. Your loved one might have chosen someone unfamiliar to you as their beneficiary.
Life insurance policies designate two main categories of beneficiaries:
As a beneficiary, be aware of life insurance scams, because they can lead to identity theft. Scammers can use life insurance to ask for your personal information, claiming it's needed for you to claim the death benefit.
We answer common questions about tracking down and claiming a deceased policyholder's life insurance:
Family members, beneficiaries, estate executors, and legal representatives with proper documentation can request information about a deceased policyholder's life insurance.
Unclaimed life insurance money goes to your state's unclaimed property office, which holds your loved one's death benefit. The funds are held until beneficiaries complete a search and claim the death benefit.
Insurers are required to make good-faith efforts to find beneficiaries, but this isn't guaranteed. Don't wait for the insurance company to contact you if your loved one has passed and you know they had coverage. Perform a policy search or use a registry to identify the correct beneficiaries.
Life insurance companies rely on claims from beneficiaries or notifications from funeral homes to confirm the insured's death. They may also use the Social Security Administration's Death Master File to match records during policy searches by Social Security number.
Life insurance policies aren't public records. But beneficiaries can search for policies through insurers once they provide proof of death and their relationship to the deceased.
Yes, resources like national databases and unclaimed property databases can assist in searching for policy details.
Some funeral homes may assist in the search process, but typically need the policy number or other personal information. In most cases, the deceased's family performs the policy search.
About Mark Fitzpatrick
Mark Fitzpatrick, a Licensed Property and Casualty Insurance Producer, is MoneyGeek's resident Personal Finance Expert. With over five years of experience analyzing the insurance market, he conducts original research and creates tailored content for all types of buyers. His insights have been featured in publications like CNBC, NBC News and Mashable.
Fitzpatrick holds a master’s degree in economics and international relations from Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree from Boston College. He's also a five-time Jeopardy champion!
He writes about economics and insurance, breaking down complex topics so people know what they're buying.
