Home Life insurance Life insurance basics The life insurance contestability period: What you need to know The life insurance contestability period: What you need to know Written by Laine Adley Laine Adley Laine Adley is a licensed life, health and annuities insurance agent in 12 states and specializes in final expense, whole life and term life insurance products. | Reviewed by Nupur Gambhir Nupur Gambhir Nupur Gambhir is a content editor and licensed life, health, and disability insurance expert. She has extensive experience bringing brands to life and has built award-nominated campaigns for travel and tech. Her insurance expertise has been featured in Bloomberg News, Forbes Advisor, CNET, Fortune, Slate, Real Simple, Lifehacker, The Financial Gym, and the end-of-life planning service. | Updated on: October 29, 2024 Why you can trust Insure.com Quality Verified At Insure.com, we are committed to providing the timely, accurate and expert information consumers need to make smart insurance decisions. All our content is written and reviewed by industry professionals and insurance experts. Our team carefully vets our rate data to ensure we only provide reliable and up-to-date insurance pricing. We follow the highest editorial standards. Our content is based solely on objective research and data gathering. We maintain strict editorial independence to ensure unbiased coverage of the insurance industry. The life insurance contestability period is a short window when insurance companies can investigate and deny death claims. This period is usually a maximum of two years from a policy becoming active and only applies to policyholders who intentionally lied on their life insurance application. While the contestability period is when insurers are the most likely to investigate a death claim, they can investigate any claim at any time if there are signs of fraud. For this reason, it’s important to be completely honest on your life insurance application — while lying on the application may get you lower premiums in the short run, it may mean no financial support for your family later on. Niki Perez, vice president at PTL Insurance Associates, shares that with her clients, she emphasizes the importance of ‘transparency and accuracy throughout the application process, much like conducting a thorough market analysis in commercial insurance to prevent potential pitfalls.’ At the end of the day, a contestability period is set to protect the insurance company from fraud and to ensure you as a customer are getting the best plan for your health and lifestyle. It only benefits you and your family the more honest you are. Key TakeawaysThe life insurance contestability period is a short time when the insurance company can investigate your claimLife insurance companies can examine the claims to make sure the decision was based on correct informationIf you did not pay the premium, your insurance will lapse, and another two-year contestability period will start if you get the policy reinstated What is the life insurance contestability period? The life insurance contestability period is a timeframe, typically two years from the policy’s start date, during which the insurer can review and potentially deny a claim if they find that the policyholder misrepresented or omitted important information on the application. If the insured passes away within this period and the insurer discovers discrepancies, they may investigate the claim and, in some cases, refuse to pay the death benefit. “During this phase, typically the first two years, insurers can investigate and potentially deny claims if they find misleading information was provided,” says Scott Hansard, owner of Hansard Insurance Agency. “In my experience, ensuring clients are upfront and truthful during the application process protects them from future complications.” For example, if you scuba dive, but were not transparent about being a scuba diver on your application and passed from a scuba diving accident, a company may not pay your family the death benefit. Also, if you had known terminal cancer, but died in a scuba diving accident within the contestability period, your insurance company could still deny your family the benefits because you lied on the application. This is why it’s very important for you to be totally honest about your lifestyle and health when you apply for life insurance. Not doing so risks the financial support you are securing for your family if you die. How long is the life insurance contestability period? While most other states have a contestability period of two years, Missouri has a contestability period of one year. Additionally, some companies may have different contestability periods that are lower than the two-period range. Although the contestability period typically ends after the first few years of a policy being active, insurers can still deny claims later on if you intentionally lied when you applied for coverage. However, it is less likely that an insurer will investigate your death for any fraudulent claims if you die outside of the contestability period window. Additionally, your contestability period renews if your policy lapses due to nonpayment of premiums. If you still want coverage after your policy lapses you will need to resubmit an application and may have higher premiums due to your current health and age at the time. You will also have another contestability period. How the contestability period works Not all claims filed within the contestability period are investigated. While the insurance company has the legal right to investigate during the contestability period, they usually only do so when there is a reason to suspect misrepresentation. For example, if someone had claimed to be a non-smoker during their application process, but passed away from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) within the first two years of their policy, an investigation process would include viewing lab results to indicate use of tobacco. If your claim is investigated and the insurer finds an instance of fraud, two things can happen: 1. If the missing information would have caused your application to be denied originally, zero death benefit will be paid to your family. 2. If the missing information would have just made your premiums higher, the difference of the premiums will be taken from the death benefit amount and your family would receive the remaining balance. QuickTake How to get life insurance if you're uninsurable Who's who on a life insurance policy What happens to the cash value of my whole life insurance policy when I die? Is accidental death and dismemberment insurance right for you? 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See more > Frequently asked questions Do all life insurance policies have a two-year contestability period? No. Double-check your policy and read it closely. It may have an incontestability clause. Also, some companies/states only have a one-year contestability period. What happens after the contestability period? After the contestability period, with most insurance policies, the policy begins to be incontestable. Again, it’s important to read through your policy to guarantee the length of the contestability period and that it is enforced. Can a life insurance company deny a claim after two years? In most cases, after the contestability period ends, a life insurance company cannot deny a claim. It is still possible that you intentionally misrepresented facts on your application, but very unlikely. A claim years down the road has less of a chance of being investigated. × Get Free Life Insurance Quotes Today! 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