When a loved one dies, families don't always know where to find the life insurance policy of the deceased.
Now there is a database that will help families find these policies and annuities and collect unclaimed benefits.
The Maryland Insurance Administration and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, or NAIC, announced Tuesday that the database had been created..
The NAIC's Life Insurance Policy Locator allows users to search nationally for lost insurance policies. About $1 billion in benefits from life insurance policies remain unclaimed, according to Consumer Reports.
Several states also had their own policy location programs. Maryland was not one of those states.
"There are many people who do not know where to begin when searching for a lost life insurance policy or annuity," Maryland Insurance Commissioner Al Redmer, Jr. said in a statement. "The life insurance policy locator streamlines and simplifies the process for consumers and insurance companies."
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