What Are Five Things Not Covered By Life Insurance?

Apparently, a life insurance policy provides coverage for any manner of death. However, if you commit fraud or die in an excluded condition — such as suicide — during the first two years of your policy's inception, it is possible that your insurance may not payout.

When you pass away, life insurance offers critical financial protection to your loved ones' financial well-being. The death benefit under your policy is payable to your beneficiary regardless of the reason for death. This includes death by natural causes and accidents.

It is possible that the circumstances surrounding a death, rather than the actual cause of death, may invalidate a policy. This occurs only in exceptional circumstances, such as situations of fraud or criminal behaviour, or where a policy exclusion is present.

Continue reading to find out more about the types of deaths that life insurance will and will not cover.

What Does Your Life Insurance Cover?

In general, whether you die as a result of natural causes, such as a heart attack or cancer, or as a result of an accident, your life insurance claim will go to your selected beneficiaries. Here is a basic breakdown of the several kinds of deaths that your life insurance policies cover:

Natural death

If you die a natural death as a result of a heart attack, cancer, infection, stroke, renal failure, old age, or any other natural cause, your insurance payment will go to your heirs and beneficiaries.

Accidents

The death benefit from your life insurance policy will be payout to your beneficiaries in case of an accident. This includes a car accident or drowning, poisoning, unintentional drug overdose, or any other unforeseen disaster.

Murder

If you are killed, your death benefit will be given to your beneficiaries - unless your beneficiary was the perpetrator of your murder or was intimately involved in your murder.

Suicide

Suicide life insurance provides coverage for suicide, and your beneficiaries will receive the death benefit unless the suicide occurs during the "contestability period."

It is typically the first two years of the policy's existence. However, there should be no other exclusion in the policy that prohibits it from happening.

Pandemic

For a policyholder who passes away as a result of COVID-19, death is considered a natural cause. Hence, the insurance company will pay out the benefit to your beneficiaries.

What is Not Covered By Life Insurance?

Maintaining your premium payments and passing away while your policy is still valid will result in a payout to the beneficiary of your life insurance policy from your insurer.

However, there are specific circumstances in which a life insurance company may choose to withhold a death benefit:

Lying

A life insurance company may refuse to pay the death benefit if you conduct life insurance fraud on your application. If you lie about any dangerous hobbies, medical issues, travel plans, or your family's health history, it may not payout.

Maintaining complete transparency and thoroughness throughout the underwriting process is the greatest approach. Only this can guarantee that there are no surprises for your beneficiaries after your death.

Dangerous activities/ hobbies

The death benefit of your life insurance policy may forfeit if you die while engaging in a risky activity. This includes routinely engaging in private aircraft flying, bungee jumping, or scuba diving. However, this is more dependent on the specifics of your policy.

If your pastime involves a significant amount of risk, your insurer may decide to include an exclusion in your policy. It prevents payment if you die while participating in a dangerous activity.

A life insurance policy for amateur pilots, for example, may need the inclusion of an aviation exclusion rider. If they die as a result of a flying accident, their beneficiaries will not get a death benefit payment.

The insurance company will inform you duly about the fact that this exclusion exists - before you sign the policy.

Murder

The rule states that if the beneficiary of a policy kills the policyholder, the beneficiary will not get a death payment. The slayer rule prohibits payment to anybody who has killed — or is intimately associated with the murder.

A death benefit is paid to your contingent beneficiaries or your estate instead of the insured's beneficiary.

Criminal activity

Deaths that occur while you engage in criminal activity may also exclude from your insurance coverage. This varies from one insurer to another, so be sure to review your policy for specifics.

Suicide

Although life insurances cover suicide, there is an exception! Suicide clauses in life insurance plans prevent payouts for suicides that occur in the first two years of the policy's existence.

As a result of suicide provisions in place by insurance firms, there is a prohibition on

applicants from taking their own lives immediately. In other cases, such as in the case of a drug overdose, this becomes more difficult.

Acts of war or terrorism

In certain cases, insurance firms include an exclusion in their policies for fatalities that are the result of a conflict. This exclusion is less prevalent in life insurance than it is in other forms of insurance, but it does occur.

If you are a serving member of the military, the situation becomes significantly more difficult. Your current deployment status, as well as your rank, will determine whether or not you are eligible for private life insurance coverage.

For clarification on this exclusion, you should contact your insurance agent or company representative.

Designation of Beneficiary

A life insurance policy with no designated beneficiary is subject to unwanted consequences. There are two other circumstances in which there can be complications in death benefit payment:

● If you do not name any beneficiaries in your life insurance policy, or

● If your beneficiaries predecease you

Without any main or dependent beneficiaries, your will shall go null and void.

It is more difficult for your loved ones to collect payment if you do not name any beneficiaries. If you do not name any beneficiaries in your insurance policy, your estate might step in to get the benefit.

If there are no beneficiaries, the money must be distributed via probate. It is a lengthy procedure in which a judge determines who should get your assets. If the benefit is distributed to your estate, your beneficiaries may also be required to pay estate taxes on the benefit.

If your beneficiaries pass away before you, the same problems arise as if you had not chosen beneficiaries at all. Your life insurance payout is paid to your estate, and your loved ones are not assured of getting the money.

You may ensure the financial safeguard of your family by changing the beneficiaries of your insurance policy. Make sure to make the changes whenever a significant life event occurs, such as a death in the family or the birth of a new child.

Bottomline

Life insurance may offer you peace of mind while also providing a useful financial safety net for your family. Quite often, life insurance policies cover any deaths by natural causes, disease, and accidents.

Nonetheless, insurers have the right to refuse coverage in certain circumstances. Make sure you read the small print of your insurance policy to understand what it does and doesn't cover.