Sec. 34.45.170. - Money owing under life insurance policies. - Alaska Statutes

(a) Money held or owing under a life or endowment insurance policy or annuity contract that has matured or terminated is presumed abandoned if unclaimed for more than three years after the money became due and payable as established from the records of the insurance company holding or owing the money.

(b) If a person other than the insured or annuitant is entitled to the money and the address of that person is not known to the company, or it is not definite and certain from the records of the company who is entitled to the money, it is presumed that the last known address of the person entitled to the money is the same as the last known address of the insured or annuitant according to the records of the company.

(c) For purposes of this section, a life endowment insurance policy or annuity contract not matured by actual proof of the death of the insured or annuitant according to the records of the company is matured and the proceeds are due and payable if

(1) the company has received due proof that the insured or annuitant has died; or

(2) the insured has attained, or would have attained if still living, the limiting age under the mortality table on which the reserve is based and

(A) the policy was in force at the time the insured attained, or would have attained, the limiting age; and

(B) neither the insured nor another person appearing to have an interest in the policy has, within the preceding two years, according to the records of the company, assigned, readjusted, or paid premiums on the policy, subjected the policy to a loan, corresponded in writing with the company concerning the policy, or otherwise indicated an interest as evidence by a memorandum or other record, on file, prepared by an employee of the company.

(d) For purposes of this section, the application of an automatic premium loan provision or other nonforfeiture provision contained in an insurance policy does not prevent a policy from being matured or terminated under (a) of this section if the insured has died or the insured or the beneficiary of the policy otherwise has become entitled to the proceeds of the policy before the depletion of the cash surrender value of a policy by the application of those nonforfeiture provisions.

(e) If the laws of the state or the terms of the life insurance policy require the company to give notice to the insured or the owner that an automatic premium loan provision or other nonforfeiture provision has been exercised and the notice is to be given to an insured or owner whose last known address, according to the records of the company, is in the state but is undeliverable, the company shall make a reasonable search to ascertain the policyholder's correct address to which the notice must be mailed.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if the company learns of the death of the insured or annuitant and the beneficiary has not communicated with the insurer within four months after the death, the company shall take reasonable steps to pay the proceeds to the beneficiary.

(g) Commencing September 8, 1988, every change-of-beneficiary form issued by an insurance company under a life or endowment insurance policy or annuity contract to an insured or owner who is a resident of the state must request the following information:

(1) the name of each beneficiary, or if a class of beneficiaries is named, the name of each current beneficiary in the class;

(2) the address of each beneficiary; and

(3) the relationship of each beneficiary to the insured.