Union Mutual Life / Union
Provident / UNUM - Missing Policyholder Search
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Union Mutual Life - UNUM - Unum Provident Life Insurance Claims and Demutualization Compensation |
Union Mutual - UNUM - UnumProvident Maine-based Union Mutual demutualized in November of 1986, and became UNUM Life Insurance Company of America. Eligible Union Mutual policyholders became entitled to receive compensation totaling $650 million. Demutualization is the process of converting a mutual life insurance company, owned by its policyholders, to a publicly traded stock company owned by shareholders, pursuant to a plan of conversion approved by government regulators. The amount paid to each policyholder is based on a number of factors, including length of time the policy has been in force, face value of the policy, and total premiums paid. For many policyholders, the windfall arising from demutualization can be substantial, but millions of missing policyholders and heirs aren't aware they are entitled to receive compensation. UNUM subsequently merged with The Provident Companies (formerly Provident Life and Accident Insurance Company) on June 30, 1999, becoming UnumProvident Corporation. UNUM shareholders became entitled to receive one share of UnumProvident for every common share owned. UnumProvident stock split several times and currently trades at approximately $17 share.
Between one-quarter and one-half of all life insurance policies go unclaimed, because it is generally up to family members to notify the insurance company when a policyholder dies, and virtually no effort is made to find lost beneficiaries. In addition, hundreds of thousands of missing policyholders aren't aware they are entitled to receive this demutualization compensation. Contact efforts were unsuccessful, due to name changes after marriage or divorce, unreported changes of address, expired postal forwarding orders and non-current beneficiary information. By law, unclaimed policy benefits, including demutualization compensation, are remitted to the custody of a government trust account until claimants come forward. Last year government custodians collected $22.8 billion, of which less than $1 billion was claimed. It is highly recommended that current and former policyholders and heirs - the majority of whom are unaware they're entitled to unclaimed policy benefits, stock & cash - initiate an Unclaimed Life Insurance Policy Search |
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