A beneficiary can be a person, charity, business or trust. If the beneficiary is a person, they can be a relative, child, spouse, friend or anyone else you happen to know. As some agents like to say, you can even name your “secret lover” as a life insurance beneficiary.

Who you should never name as your beneficiary?

Whom should I not name as beneficiary? Minors, disabled people and, in certain cases, your estate or spouse. Avoid leaving assets to minors outright. If you do, a court will appoint someone to look after the funds, a cumbersome and often expensive process.

Who should I designate as a beneficiary?

Generally, you can designate any one or more of the following examples as a beneficiary:

• One person.
• Two or more people (and you decide how the benefit is split among them)
• The trustee of a trust you’ve established.
• A non-profit or charity.
• Your estate.

Can you list anyone as a beneficiary?

Can anyone be named as a beneficiary? Your beneficiary can be a person, a charity, a trust, or your estate. Almost any person can be named as a beneficiary, although your state of residence or the provider of your benefits may restrict who you can name as a beneficiary.

Can I make anyone my life insurance beneficiary?

Your beneficiary can be any person or entity of your choosing, such as a spouse, child, trust or charity, the III says. Spouse: Keep in mind that certain states require your spouse’s permission to name someone else as your life insurance beneficiary, according to nolo.com.

How do life insurance companies know when someone dies?

Life insurance companies typically do not know when a policyholder dies until they are informed of his or her death, usually by the policy’s beneficiary. Thus the life insurance company would stop sending premium notices after all premiums were paid. Moreover, there is no master list of who is alive and who is dead.

How do you split life insurance beneficiaries?

You can name more than one person to receive the proceeds of your life insurance policy and designate the portion each will receive when you die. For example, many parents of adult children name all of the kids to get equal shares.

How do you word a life insurance beneficiary?

DO identify the primary beneficiary. This should include their full name(s), date of birth, and/or social security numbers. DO designate percentages rather than specific dollar amounts. DO include a secondary or contingent beneficiary in your policy.

Can I name my estate as beneficiary of my life insurance?

A beneficiary is the person or entity you name (i.e., designate) to receive the death benefits of a life insurance policy. If you do not want to name an individual or entity as your beneficiary, you can name your own estate.

How do you assign a beneficiary?

Write only one beneficiary on each line. Make sure that you write the full names of all beneficiaries. For example, if you name you children as beneficiaries, DO NOT merely write “children” on one of the lines; instead write the full names of each of your children on separate lines.

Can you put a friend as a beneficiary?

A beneficiary can be a person, charity, business or trust. If the beneficiary is a person, they can be a relative, child, spouse, friend or anyone else you happen to know. As some agents like to say, you can even name your “secret lover” as a life insurance beneficiary.

What happens if you don’t have beneficiaries?

Intestate succession to determine beneficiaries In almost all cases where there’s no beneficiary, a process called intestate succession takes over. Each state creates its own intestacy laws (the laws that govern who inherits when there’s no will), but most follow the Uniform Probate Code.

What happens if you don’t list a beneficiary?

What happens to my account if I do not name a beneficiary? If you do not designate any beneficiaries or all your primary and contingent beneficiaries predecease you, your surviving spouse generally becomes your beneficiary. If you do not have a surviving spouse, payment of your account is made to your estate.

Are beneficiaries limited to only one person?

Typically, any person or entity can be named a beneficiary of a trust, will, or life insurance policy. The individual distributing the funds, or the benefactor, can put various stipulations on the disbursement of funds, such as the beneficiary attaining a certain age or being married.

Does a beneficiary have to share with siblings?

Does a beneficiary have to share proceeds with a sibling? The short answer: probably not. You don’t have to share the proceeds of a life insurance death benefit with anyone (unless you received it as a part of a trust for a minor child).

Can I make my mother my beneficiary?

You can name anyone as a beneficiary, not just a spouse: Parents, children, siblings, a special-needs niece, close friends, your unmarried partner or anyone else.