Life insurance is often the only liquidity a family has in the first month after a death. Knowing the process in advance is the difference between money in three weeks and money in six months.
Step 1: Intimate the insurer
The nominee informs the insurer in writing or through the online claim portal. Provide the policy number, the date, place and cause of death, and the claimant's relationship to the deceased. There is no benefit to waiting — intimation is not the claim, it starts the clock.
Step 2: Submit the claim documents
| Document | Always required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Claim form (Form A) | Yes | Signed by the nominee |
| Original policy document | Yes | Indemnity bond if lost |
| Death certificate | Yes | Municipal or registrar issued |
| Nominee KYC and bank proof | Yes | Cancelled cheque or passbook copy |
| Medical / hospital records | If death in hospital | Discharge summary, treatment papers |
| FIR, post-mortem, panchnama | If unnatural death | Accident, suicide, or unexplained death |
| Employer certificate | For group policies | From the last employer |
Step 3: Assessment and settlement
IRDAI's protection of policyholders' interests regulations require insurers to settle or reject a claim within 30 days of receiving the last necessary document. Where the claim warrants investigation — typically an early claim within three years of issue — the investigation must be completed within 90 days and settlement follows within 30 days of that.
Why claims get rejected
- Non-disclosure of a pre-existing illness or of tobacco use at the time of the proposal.
- Understated income or existing cover, making the sum assured disproportionate.
- Policy in lapse because a premium was missed and the grace period expired.
- Nominee details never updated after a divorce or a death.
- Death within the first year of a policy issued without medical underwriting.
Section 45 of the Insurance Act bars an insurer from questioning a policy on any ground after three years from commencement, revival or rider addition — including on grounds of misstatement. Before three years, an insurer can repudiate for fraud or material misstatement, with reasons in writing.
If the claim is rejected
- Ask for the rejection in writing with the specific ground relied on.
- Escalate to the insurer's grievance redressal officer.
- File with the Insurance Ombudsman, free of cost, for claims up to the prescribed limit.
- IRDAI's Bima Bharosa portal handles complaints that the insurer has not resolved.
What to prepare while you are alive
Record the insurer, policy number, sum assured, premium date and nominee for every policy, and keep a scan of the policy document where the nominee can reach it. Saarthi's insurance scanner extracts these fields from an uploaded policy PDF so the record stays accurate.
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