Insurance Beneficiaries

[rosner]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia

When a funeral home & a relative of the insured are designated as IRREVOCABLE primary
& contingent beneficiaries respectively, what language is used on the assignment form to
indicate the percentage of benefits to each inasmuch as the level of funeral home expense
is still unknown ?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[ErinGoBragh]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia

When a funeral home & a relative of the insured are designated as IRREVOCABLE primary
& contingent beneficiaries respectively, what language is used on the assignment form to
indicate the percentage of benefits to each inasmuch as the level of funeral home expense
is still unknown ?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

Every policy I've ever seen has simply had a collateral assignment with no assigned percentage of the policy- instead, at the time the person passed, a statement of interest had to be sent in by the funeral home, along with a bill stating the amount.

 

[efflandt]

Something is fishy about the question. A contingent beneficiary is a backup that gets nothing unless all primary beneficiary(s) are deceased. That would mean that the relative would get nothing unless the funeral home was out of business. Although, there is sometimes wording that can leave it to decendents of a primary beneficiary. Somebody should explain to the insured what primary and contingent beneficiary mean, and how to properly word everything for the insured's intentions. Certainly any agent for the insurance company should be able to help with any questions about properly filling out the beneficiary form.

It sounds like both the funeral home and the relative should be "primary" beneficiaries, with a percentage or dollar amount specificed for the funeral home, if not equal parts, and the remainder will go to the relative.