How to claim a life insurance payout after someone dies, when probate is needed, what trust policies mean, and how to record the claim for estate administration.
This guide is part of ProbateHelp's Estate Assets guide cluster.
A joint life policy that pays on the first death may pay the surviving policyholder under its terms. The survivor should notify the insurer and ask what evidence it needs. If the proceeds are payable directly to the survivor rather than the estate, the claim does not normally depend on the estate's grant.
The insurer may delay payment while a coroner's investigation or inquest is ongoing, especially if the policy has exclusions that could matter. Once the cause of death and policy terms are clear, the insurer should explain whether it will pay, delay, or reject the claim.
Search paperwork, lawfully accessible email records and bank statements for premium payments. Contact any financial adviser, employer or broker the deceased used, or the insurers you think are most likely.
This depends on the scheme and payment route. Check the employer or scheme rules, who decides the recipient and whether the benefit is payable from a registered pension scheme. From 6 April 2027, qualifying death in service benefits from registered pension schemes are excluded from the estate under the new pension inheritance-tax rules.