In Nationwide Life Ins. Co. v. Thompson, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, considered a dispute over life insurance policy proceeds. The subject policy had been cancelled for non-payment of premium after two notices and the expiration of a sixty-one day grace period. Shortly after receiving notice of the cancellation, the policyholder contacted the insurer to request reinstatement. The policy language stated that the policy could be reinstated while the policyholder was alive if the policyholder applied for reinstatement within three years of cancellation, provided satisfactory evidence of insurability, and paid three months of premiums. The policyholder satisfied
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Archives for Life Insurance
New York Court Holds Life Insurer Must Pay Claim After Failing to Strictly Comply With Statutory Notice Requirements Regarding Policy Termination
A New York court found that Allstate Life Insurance Company was required to pay the proceeds of a life insurance policy because it had failed to properly notify the insured of the termination of the policy. In Rivera v. Allstate Life Insurance Company of New York, the Suffolk County trial court entered summary judgment in favor of the insured and found as a matter of law that the insurer must pay the $100,000 policy limits for failing to comply with the notice requirements of Insurance Law § 3211. The court noted that its decision was in line with public policy
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New York Court Holds Life Insurer Can Deduct Unpaid Premiums from Policy’s Death Benefit
Applying New Jersey law, the the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York held that the John Hancock Life Insurance Company was entitled to withhold unpaid premium payments from a life policy’s death benefit. In John Hancock Life Insurance Company v. Katzman, the policy was in default when the insured died. Interpreting the words of the policy and finding no ambiguity, the court held that the policy allowed the insurer to subtract the unpaid monthly premiums from the policy’s death benefit as a matter of law. The facts and procedural history of the Katzman case are
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Pennsylvania Federal Court Finds That Illegal Passing Does Not Trigger the Criminal Act Exclusion of an Accidental Death Policy
In Locklear v. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania held that an insurer could not use alleged vehicle code violations to trigger the “criminal act” exclusion of an accidental death policy. The insurer denied benefits to the widow of a man who was killed in a car accident when the motorcycle he was riding collided with a truck while he was attempting to pass a construction vehicle in a no-passing zone. Plaintiff brought suit under ERISA after the insurer denied her claim and she exhausted all her administrative appeals.
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New Jersey Appellate Court Holds That Spouse Does Not Have “Presumptive Right” to Life Insurance Benefits
The New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, has rejected the argument that an insured’s spouse has a “presumptive right” to the policyholder’s life insurance benefits. Fox v. Lincoln Financial Group concerns a life insurance policy that initially named the policyholder’s first spouse as a beneficiary. After the policyholder divorced, he designated his sister as sole beneficiary. Several years later, the policyholder married a Brazilian citizen. In support of his spouse’s application for American citizenship, the policyholder executed an affidavit in which he agreed to support his spouse at 125 percent of the poverty level. Under the terms of the affidavit,
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