Most valid life insurance claims should be paid within 30 to 60 days. If the death was natural, the paperwork is complete, and the policy is outside its contestability window, there is no good reason for a delay. In fact, many states have laws that require “prompt” payment—some even impose interest penalties for late payouts.
So when 60 days pass and all you’ve heard is “we’re still reviewing,” it’s time to start asking harder questions. If you need an Arizona life insurance claim attorney call us.
Why Are They Delaying Your Claim?
Let’s be blunt: delays benefit the insurance company, not you. Here are four of the most common tactics:
Paperwork Ping-Pong: Missing documents are the number one excuse insurers give. But often, those documents were submitted—and somehow “lost.” We’ve seen clients send the same death certificate three times before it was “received.”
Contestability Reviews: If the policy is less than two years old, the insurer can dig into the application and hunt for discrepancies. This is legal—but often abused. A misspelled medication, outdated weight, or forgotten minor condition can trigger a full investigation even if the death was clearly unrelated.
Suspicious Circumstances: Deaths involving accidents, alcohol, suicide, or criminal acts almost always result in delays. But sometimes the insurer stretches the investigation longer than necessary, claiming they’re “waiting on reports” that aren’t even required.
Administrative Backlogs: Short-staffed? System updates? Claims volume? These are poor excuses when a grieving family is waiting for survival money. Insurers rarely delay collecting premiums—so they shouldn’t delay paying out benefits.
What If the Claim Gets Denied?
Some delays are just stalling tactics before a denial. If your claim is eventually denied, you’ll receive a written explanation—often citing:
Nonpayment (policy lapse)
Material misrepresentation on the application
Policy exclusions (suicide, felony, intoxication)
Beneficiary disputes or outdated designations
This is when you need legal backup. Appeals rarely succeed unless the insurer feels pressure. We know their process, we know their thresholds—and we know how to make them move.
When Delay Crosses the Line
If more than 60 days have passed and you’ve submitted everything required, it may not just be a delay. It may be bad faith—and that’s grounds for legal action. In many cases, just having an attorney contact the insurer results in an immediate change of tone. They know they can’t drag their feet when someone’s watching.
What You Should Do If Your Claim Is Stalled
Get everything in writing. Don’t rely on phone calls—demand emailed updates and confirmation of receipt for every document.
Log every contact. Date, time, who you spoke to, and what was said.
Verify the policy timeline. If the policy is older than two years, the contestability period is over. Use that to your advantage.
Consult a life insurance attorney. A delay is sometimes a soft denial. We know how to cut through the stalling and get results.
Don’t Let the Clock Work Against You
Delays can quietly erode your legal position—especially with group policies governed by ERISA. These have very short appeal deadlines. If you wait too long to act, you could lose your chance to fight back.
We Don’t Let Insurance Companies Stall Our Clients
We’ve handled cases where insurers sat on claims for six months with no valid reason—until we stepped in. We’ve uncovered internal emails that showed they knew the claim was valid but were “delaying for clarification.” We’ve forced insurers to pay interest, penalties, and the full benefit after proving deliberate delay.
If you’re tired of waiting, we’ll handle it from here. Our firm doesn’t charge a fee unless we win—and we fight like we have something to lose.