Adapted from The Straits Times 5 Jan 2015
Life Insurance Association sets up website for public to check if any money is due to them
Members of the public can check if they or their deceased relatives have policies with unclaimed maturity proceeds outstanding for more than 12 months.
It is believed that insurance companies are sitting on millions in unclaimed proceeds from life policies. LIA was unable to comment on the exact figure when queried.
You can check out the LIA Register of Unclaimed Life Insurance Proceeds at http://www.lia.org.sg/consumers/unclaimed-proceeds/list
Some policyholders may not be aware that there are proceeds to claim. When premiums are not paid, a policy might not have lapsed. Instead, it would have become a “paid-up policy” and provided cover for a reduced sum that is payable on maturity.
Individual insurers have been making efforts to trace claimants through various means, including sending advisers to contact their clients, placing newspaper advertisements and listing unclaimed proceeds on the company’s website.
The LIA said there is no expiry timeframe for these proceeds.
The LIA list will be updated every six months and will show information such as the policyholder’s name, his identification number, which will be masked, and the life insurance company’s name.
There are two search options – the policyholder’s name and the life insurance company’s name.
Even with the register in place, LIA said life insurers will continue to do what they have been doing on a company basis to trace claimants.
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