Life Insurance Lawyer New Mexico
New Mexico Denied Life Insurance Claims Recently Settled
- Lincoln Heritage interpleader lawsuit $308,000.00
- Primerica self-inflicted injury suicide $212,000.00
- AIG no coverage at the time of death $459,000.00
- Foresters drunk driving death issue $280,000.00
- New Mexico denied life insurance claim $1,357,200.00
- ERISA competing claimants issue $182,000.00
- Globe material misrepresentation $114,000.00
- Symetra autoerotic asphyxiation death $229,000.00
- Genworth issue with grace period $102,270.00
- New Mexico divorce and life insurance $826,900.00
- SGLI resolution with beneficiaries $400,000.00
- Transamerica policy not in force $105,000.00
- FEGLI invalid beneficiary designation $135,200.00
- New Mexico denied AD&D policy $754,000.00
- USAA non-payment of premiums $116,000.00
Life insurance and the commission of crimes
Life insurance companies are like any other for-profit business. They exist for the sole purpose of making the most money for executives and shareholders. To do this, they need to collect as much money as possible. This typically happens by collecting premiums from policyholders. In addition to that, however, life insurance companies strive to avoid spending money. To achieve this goal, they try very hard to avoid paying out claims against policies.
Indeed, life insurance companies (and the armies of lawyers they employ) have become experts at concocting reasons for denying claims. This claim denial process begins before a single person ever purchases a policy. It begins with the drafting of long-winded, complex, and oft-times confusing policy language. The most important provisions of these policies for the insurance companies are the exclusions.
Exclusions are basically formal reasons why the life insurance company can deny a claim. Some common exclusions include suicide, material misrepresentations in the application process, and nonpayment of premiums. Of course, there are lesser known exclusions as well. One of those involves death during the commission of a crime.
This article explores a case where an insurance company used this lesser known exclusion to deny a valid claim for death benefits. Fortunately, this case turned out favorably for the beneficiary. Many, however, do not – especially when beneficiaries try to navigate the muddy waters of the insurance industry on their own.
A passionate romance
The case at hand involves a married couple – Linda and John. Linda and John met while they were attending college and fell madly in love. Within a year of graduation, they were married. Driven by a common desire to succeed, both of them obtained graduate degrees and went on to accept high-paying jobs in medical research and development.
Everyone who knew John and Linda knew one truth about them – as much as they loved one another, they were prone to having epic arguments. This was true from the outset of their relationship and was an unfortunate reality that plagued them throughout their lives together. Ultimately, it was their passionate arguing that led to John’s demise.
One fourth of July, John and Linda attended a large party at the home of one of their friends. The home was located out in the country off of a narrow and winding road. Though John had agreed to act as the couple’s designated driver that evening, he ended up having a few drinks before the sun went down. This angered Linda who, having had several drinks herself, proceeded to berate John in front of their friends.
Enraged, John hopped in the couple’s car on his own. As he sped away from the party, several people expressed concern for his safety. Knowing the couple’s propensity to fight and make up rather quickly, however, no one did anything to stop John.
Unfortunately, this was to be the couple’s last fight. As he sped away from the party, John failed to negotiate a curve in the road and his car veered off an embankment. John’s body was found in the car the next morning. He had not survived the impact.
The police undertook a full investigation surrounding the circumstances of the accident. The police report noted that John may have been driving as fast as 100 miles per hour – a speed that constituted a felony in that state. Not having any witnesses to the accident, however, their only conclusive finding was that John was driving above the posted speed limit when he lost control of the car. A coroner’s report stated that John’s cause of death was blunt force trauma occasioned by the accident.
Life insurance claim denied
Shortly after the accident, Linda dug out John’s life insurance policy. The policy provided a death benefit of $50,000, plus an additional $150,000 if John died accidentally. Linda made a claim for the full $200,000 benefit. Given that John died in an accident, Linda never thought her claim would be denied.
That is exactly what happened, however. Nearly one month after Linda submitted her claim, she received a claim denial letter in the mail. The stated reason for the denial was that John died during the commission of a felony (driving in excess of 100 mph) and that the policy contained an express exclusion relieving the insurance company from paying a claim under such circumstances.
Linda was devastated. On top of losing her husband, she was now unsure how she was going to pay off the mortgage on the couple’s house. Just as she was becoming resigned to the claim denial, a friend suggested she call an attorney specializing in the wrongful denial of life insurance claims.
It’s a good thing she did. The attorney successfully argued in court that there had been no conclusive finding that John was driving at a felony rate of speed at the time of his death. Rather, police simply noted that he “may have” been driving 100 mph. Without additional proof that a felony occurred, the life insurance company had no basis for invoking the felony exclusion of John’s life insurance policy.
Ultimately, the court agreed. It awarded Linda the full policy benefit, with interest. That allowed Linda to pay off the mortgage and begin to piece her life back together without the strain of financial insecurity.
As lawyers who specialize in the wrongful denial of life insurance claims, we see insurance companies employ these tactics every day. They will twist facts and reach unsupportable conclusions in a simple effort to avoid paying out on otherwise valid claims. While this may be a way for them to increase profits, it is a practice that can destroy the lives of beneficiaries.
If you or someone you love has had a life insurance claim denied for a reason that just doesn’t seem fair, call us today. We’ll talk over the circumstances of your case and let you know whether we believe you can successfully contest that denial. We’re here to help.