Oklahoma Legislature : Are Insurance Companies Scamming to Retain Unclaimed Life Insurance Benefits?

According to a report on the web site of KOCO, the ABC affiliate of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma lawmakers will investigate a recent study of the insurance industry which suggests that some companies are lobbying for amendments to stringent disclosure requirements. Currently, many state unclaimed property laws mandate holders of unclaimed property, including life insurance benefits, to report to government entities that such funds exist, and, if unclaimed after the passage of time, to turn over these funds to a regulatory body. In most states, the state treasurer’s office administers unclaimed property, including matured life insurance benefits.

The proposed amendments would create “loopholes” so that insurance companies would avoid “paying out unclaimed life insurance policies to the [Oklahoma] unclaimed property program.”

Neither the entity responsible for the study nor the study’s title is identified in KOCO’s report.  Our investigation into the report’s findings will continue.