Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs is urging Gov. Bruce Rauner to sign a measure that requires life insurers to confirm they are not holding death benefits. Frerichs, a Democrat, took his message to Rockford Tuesday. Rauner signed legislation last year that requires life insurers to conduct death master file comparisons on policies in good standing from January 2017 forward.
Frerichs says this legislation would require insurers to retroactively cross check policies to identify policy holders who have died and find benefits that have not been claimed.
"My hope is that the state treasurer’s office never talks about unpaid life insurance benefits again," Frerichs said. "My hope is that the treasurer never collects any unpaid life insurance benefits again, which means that we pass this legislation and insurance companies are doing the right thing and they are paying out benefits in a timely manner.”
Frerichs says his office has identified more than $550 million that insurance companies have not paid to Illinois residents. The Illinois Chamber of Commerce opposes the legislation.