Mass. Division of Insurance Life Insurance Policy Locator – A Great Tool To Help Insureds Find Lost Policies

The DOI’s Life Insurance Policy Locator was launched in 2016

The Life Insurance Policy Locator is a free tool that the Massachusetts Division of Insurance launched, in conjunction with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), in November of 2016.

The NAIC’s Life Insurance Policy Locator was created as a national service to provide consumers with access and assistance in finding forgotten or lost life insurance policies and annuities. Approximately $1 billion in benefits from life insurance policies are unclaimed said the NAIC and the Division citing statistics from Consumer Reports. The NAIC tool was built on life insurance policy locator programs already developed separately in various states.

“State insurance regulators saw there was a need for a national service like this one a few years ago as a result of consumer inquiries and complaints regarding lost policies or unnamed beneficiaries,” said Division of Insurance Commissioner Gary Anderson. “Without this tool, there are many individuals and families who would not have the financial benefits their loved one intended them to have. While life insurance can be a difficult topic for families to discuss, it’s critical that policy information is kept safe and accessible, and that beneficiaries are fully informed.”

More than $2 million has been returned with this new tool in the past 12 months alone

In just the past 12 months alone, the Massachusetts Division of Insurance has helped match consumers with long-lost life insurance policies and annuities totaling more than $2 million dollars.

Life insurance offers a layer of protection and financial comfort to loved ones in the event of a death,” said Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation Undersecretary John Chapman. “This tool has clearly been effective in connecting many Massachusetts consumers with lost policies and the money they’re owed.”

According to the latest report from the Division, in the past 12 months, policies and annuities totaling approximately $2,133,064 million has been matched with consumers. And in the past two years since the inception of the tool, 342 beneficiaries have been connected with lost policies and annuities totaling $4,102,947.

Nationally, the NAIC says the free locator has helped match 24,934 consumers with lost policies or annuities, with more than 48,000 consumers having conducted searches nationwide. The first year alone, the policy locator helped consumer find $92.5 million in lost benefits, however, as more matches have been made to the initial requests from the first year, that total has increased to $166.7 million. Overall, the NAIC says more than $368 million has been recovered since the official launch of the tool two years ago.