David Kaye lost his wife to a tragic snorkeling accident in the Caribbean in March of 2018, and through his mourning was tasked with handling all of her affairs. That’s when he encountered issues trying to claim his wife’s life insurance policy.
The life insurance company refused to accept the Consular Death Report of a U.S. Citizen Abroad (CRDA) as official proof that his late wife had died. The company insisted on obtaining an original death certificate from the Netherlands, the nation governing the island where Mrs. Kaye passed away, and refused to accept a photocopy of that certificate along with the CRDA. The company even refused to explain why they wouldn’t accept any documentation besides the original death certificate, only telling Mr. Kaye that it was “company policy.”
After this months-long correspondence with the insurance company, Mr. Kaye contacted Jeff’s staff for help on the issue. Jeff’s staff discovered that the company was a subdivision of a larger insurance company with headquarters in Minnesota. The staff reached out and connected with the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which regulates Minnesota-based insurance companies, and requested that they look into the issue on Mr. Kaye’s behalf. The Department of Commerce immediately looked into the problem, and after researching the matter, confirmed that a CRDA would be sufficient proof of death under Minnesota law.
After a few weeks, the company processed the life insurance claim and offered a sincere and heartfelt apology to Mr. Kaye and ensured that they would look into their foreign death claims process. Mr. Kaye was grateful that Jeff’s staff was able to lend their expertise and time to fix the situation.
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