There are many complicated things about life insurance, but changing the beneficiary on your policy isn’t one of them. You can change the beneficiary at any time by contacting your insurance company.
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Changing the beneficiary on a life insurance policy is easy, but can only done by the policy owner. Knowing how to change the beneficiary on life insurance is important in case something in your life changes, such as a divorce or children becoming adults.
To change your beneficiary, reach out to your insurance company. You'll likely need to make the request in writing, and your insurer can provide the correct forms. There are some things you should know about changing your life insurance beneficiary, so read on for more.
Items on this page Explore itemsFor changing beneficiary on life insurance, all you need to do is call your agent or life insurance company and tell them you would like to change the beneficiary. They’ll provide you with the proper steps, which usually involve filling out a form either online or in writing, to change the beneficiary.
“Typically it’s as easy as calling your agent if you have a local one,” Colin Desnoyers, an agent with the Moore Agencies of New England, says. “Companies now will usually have a web portal that clients can use where they can change some information like that.”
Yes. There is no specific time when you can change the beneficiary. You can change it the day after your policy goes into effect or you can change it 10 years later. There is no mandatory waiting period or limitation.
There are both revocable and irrevocable beneficiaries. A revocable beneficiary is one you can change. An irrevocable beneficiary cannot be changed by the policyholder alone once it is locked in. The only way an irrevocable beneficiary can be removed from a policy is for that beneficiary to agree to forfeit their rights to any money.
Desnoyers says that while changing the beneficiary is easy, many people should think beyond who gets the money to ensuring the money is used as intended.
“A lot of people really put a lot of stock in [the beneficiary], but at the end of the day, a beneficiary is who we’re releasing the money to,” Desnoyers says. “A lot of families think ‘well, we’ve established a beneficiary so that’s where the money’s going to get and it’ll stay there.’ A lot of the times they don’t have the other tools other than just a named beneficiary, like a last will and testament or other things to make sure the money is handled correctly.”
The only person who can change the beneficiary is the policyholder. The policyholder is the person who has their name on the life insurance plan. There should only be one policyholder per plan.
You can name anyone you like as your beneficiary, although there are some state laws that may apply to spouses. Beyond individual people, charities, trusts, and an estate can also be the beneficiary of a life insurance policy. You can also have multiple beneficiaries on your policy.
For example, if you have two children you can name both as beneficiaries and they would each get half of the assets when they are released after your death. It's important to note that naming minor children as beneficiaries can create legal headaches; it's best to name an adult or a trust.
No. Once you have passed away the policy will pay out to the beneficiaries your life insurance company has on file.
Yes, if you are the sole owner of the policy you can change the beneficiary at any time even during a divorce. However, there are certain restrictions to that. If you were to put an ex-spouse as the beneficiary during the divorce proceedings, they will be automatically revoked as a beneficiary once the marriage is formally dissolved. Check your state laws to see what you can do.
Yes, if they own the policy. Only the policy owner can change the beneficiary. If your spouse took out a policy on you, then they are the owner and can change the beneficiary.
