The state Insurance Department introduced Wednesday a free online service to assist consumers searching for deceased relatives’ lost life insurance policies and annuities.
Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade announced the Life Insurance Policy Locator, developed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, provides free nationwide access for help in finding old policies and annuities.
There are an estimated $1 billion in unclaimed benefits and life insurance policies in the U.S., Wade said.
Consumer requests to find a lost policy are encrypted and secured to maintain confidentiality. Participating insurers will compare submitted requests with available policyholder information and report all matches to state insurance departments through the locator. Companies will then contact beneficiaries or their authorized representatives within 90 days.
For more information, go to the insurance department’s homepage at http://www.ct.gov/cid/site/default.asp.
