Can child support services claim insurance benefit?

[cybernana]

What is the name of your state? MN
The deceased named his wife as beneficiary on his life insurance. He also left five children still living at home.
She received a letter from child support services that their office will be filing a claim on the insurance for a child he had from a previous relationship. This child is handicapped and receives SSI. The deceased was paying child support as well, which was collected through child support services. Is this legal? Should she retain an attorney to protect her benefit?

 

[JETX]

Is this legal?

Yes.

Should she retain an attorney to protect her benefit?

This is NOT her benefit.... it is for the children.

 

[cybernana]

The children are not named as beneficiaries, the wife is.

 

[Dandy Don]

Please explain your interest in this matter--are you wanting to find an answer that will favor the handicapped child or are you wanting to protect the interest of the surviving spouse?

Surviving spouse should at least retain an attorney to look into the details of this matter. It's difficult to see how the child support services would be able to legally claim any portion of this money since it is payable directly to the wife. I think that perhaps the child support agency misspoke and perhaps they meant they would be filing a claim against the man's probated estate (if there is an estate) to recover monies, which may be perfectly okay but that is different from getting the insurance money. Surviving spouse needs to get an attorney or at least contact the insurance company to make sure that the child support services agency is not filing an interpleader action to send the matter to court or interfering in any other way with the payment, and spouse needs to ask for some time of time frame as to when she can expect to receive her check.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])

 

[cybernana]

I was looking for an unbiased opinion but all of these children are related to me. The mother of the handicapped child is not interested in the money for her daughter but social services initiated this. My understanding is that the beneficiary is the "owner" of the benefit and no one else would be entitled to it? Of course his estate would be a different matter.

 

[Betty]

If the wife is the only named bene on the policy, the life ins. proceeds should go to her. As suggested by Dandy Don, the spouse might want to contact the ins. co. to be sure/verify that the proceeds are going to be paid to her. If after calling, there seems to be a problem re the proceeds, the spouse may then want to contact an attorney.