LIC Death Claim Process: How to Claim, Documents Required, Settlement Time and What to Do if a Claim Is Rejected

The LIC death claim process has four parts: inform LIC, collect the claim forms and documents, submit them to the servicing branch, and receive the money by bank transfer. For most policies that have run more than three years, it is mostly paperwork. Claims within three years take a little longer because LIC verifies them. IRDAI rules set clear deadlines for each.

We know this is a hard time to deal with forms. This guide lays out each step, the documents, the timelines, the law that protects your claim, and what to do if LIC says no. We are an independent site, not LIC. Your servicing branch and the policy document have the final word.

Step 1: Inform LIC (claim intimation)

The person entitled to the money (the nominee, an assignee, or a legal heir if there is no nominee) should write to the servicing branch shown on the policy bond. Include:

• policy number(s) and the full name of the deceased;
• date, place and cause of death;
• the claimant’s name, relationship and contact details.

If you do not know the servicing branch, any LIC branch can usually take the intimation and pass it on. LIC has been adding online services, so check its official website for a current online claim intimation option. There is no benefit in waiting; the branch will reply with the forms and the list of requirements for your case.

If the deceased held several LIC policies, list them all in one letter. Each policy is settled separately.

Step 2: Collect the forms and documents

What you need depends mainly on whether the claim is early (death within three years) or non-early.

Document	Non-early claim	Early claim (within 3 years)
Claim Form A, claimant’s statement (Form 3783; LIC lists 3783A for policies in force 3+ years)	Yes	Yes
Certified extract from the death register (death certificate)	Yes	Yes
Original policy bond, with any assignment deeds	Yes	Yes
NEFT mandate with cancelled cheque or passbook copy	Yes	Yes
Claimant’s PAN, photo ID and address proof	Yes	Yes
Age proof of the deceased, if age was not admitted	If applicable	If applicable
Claim Form B (Form 3784), from the doctor who treated the last illness	No	Yes
Claim Form B1 (Form 3816), from the hospital	No	If treated in hospital
Claim Form C (Form 3785), from a person who attended the cremation or burial	No	Yes
Claim Form E (Form 3787), employer’s certificate	No	If employed
FIR, post-mortem and police final report	If death was accidental or unnatural	If death was accidental or unnatural
Legal evidence of title (succession certificate etc.)	If no valid nominee	If no valid nominee

Tips that save time:

• The name and bank account on the NEFT mandate must match the claimant exactly.
• Keep photocopies of everything, and get a dated acknowledgement for what you submit.
• If the policy bond is lost, tell the branch; it will usually ask for an indemnity bond before settling.

Early vs non-early claims

An early claim is one where death happens within three years of the date of commencement of risk, or of revival, or of adding a rider, whichever is later. LIC treats these as routine verification cases. A field officer may check hospital records, the treating doctor, and the circumstances of death, which is why Forms B, B1, C and E exist.

An early claim is not a rejected claim. Most are paid. Verification just checks that the health and personal details given in the proposal were correct.

Section 45: the three-year protection

Section 45 of the Insurance Act, 1938, as amended in 2015, is the most important law for families making a claim:

• After three years from the date of issue, risk commencement, revival or rider, whichever is later, a policy cannot be called in question on any ground, not even fraud.
• Within three years, the insurer can question the policy on the ground of fraud, or because a fact material to life expectancy was misstated or suppressed. It must give the grounds in writing.
• If a policy is repudiated for misstatement that is not fraud, the premiums collected must be refunded within 90 days of repudiation.
• A fact counts as material only if it has a direct bearing on the risk. The insurer must show it would not have issued the policy had it known.
• Section 45 does not stop LIC from calling for proof of age and adjusting the terms accordingly.

Settlement timelines

Stage	Timeline
Death claim decision, no investigation	Within 15 days of receiving the claim and required documents
Death claim decision, with investigation	Within 45 days
Delay beyond these limits	Interest at bank rate plus 2%
Premium refund after repudiation for misstatement	Within 90 days
Grievance reply from the insurer	Within 14 days

These are based on IRDAI’s master circular on protection of policyholders’ interests, dated 5 September 2024. The clock effectively runs from when LIC has everything it needs, so complete papers matter more than anything else.

Worked example: what the nominee receives

Suresh bought a policy similar to New Endowment 714 at age 35 with a ₹10 lakh sum assured and a yearly premium of ₹50,918 (from our calculator; no GST is charged on it, since individual life insurance premiums have been GST-exempt from 22 September 2025). He dies during the grace period of the 9th policy year, before paying that year’s premium. He had a ₹1,50,000 policy loan with an assumed ₹6,000 of unpaid interest. We assume bonus of ₹40 per ₹1,000 a year.

Item	Amount
Sum assured on death (higher of ₹10 lakh or 7 × ₹50,918)	₹10,00,000
Bonus for 8 completed years (₹40,000 a year)	₹3,20,000
Gross claim	₹13,20,000
Less policy loan and interest	− ₹1,56,000
Less unpaid premium for the grace period	− ₹50,918
Net claim paid to nominee	₹11,13,082

The policy ran more than three years, so this is a non-early claim protected by Section 45. A final additional bonus, if one applies, would be extra. Had Suresh died in year 2 and LIC proved a non-fraudulent misstatement, the nominee would get back the two premiums paid, ₹1,01,836, within 90 days. Estimate bonus on your own policy with the LIC bonus calculator, and see how loans reduce claims in our LIC loan against policy guide.

What affects the claim amount

• Plan type: a pure term plan such as New Tech Term 954 pays the sum assured on death and no bonus; endowment plans add bonuses.
• Riders: an Accidental Death and Disability Benefit Rider adds a further amount if death is due to an accident, subject to its terms.
• Lapsed policies: if premiums had stopped, only the paid-up value (if the policy had acquired one) may be payable.
• Suicide: most current LIC plans pay at least 80% of premiums paid, or the surrender value if higher, if death is by suicide within 12 months of risk commencement or revival. Check your policy’s exclusion clause.

No nominee, or the nominee has died

If there is no valid nomination, or the nominee died before the policyholder, LIC pays the policyholder’s legal heirs. Expect to provide a succession certificate or other evidence of title, which can take time. This is the best reason to keep nominations current; see our LIC nominee change guide. If a person is missing rather than confirmed dead, the law generally presumes death only after seven years without news, so keep paying premiums meanwhile.

Tax on an LIC death claim

A death claim is fully exempt under Section 11 read with Schedule II of the Income-tax Act, 2025 (earlier Section 10(10D)). The 10% premium rule and the ₹5 lakh yearly premium cap apply to maturity amounts, not death claims, so no TDS is deducted on a death benefit.

If the claim is rejected or delayed

1. Read the letter. A repudiation must state the grounds in writing.
2. Appeal within LIC. LIC has Claims Dispute Redressal Committees at its zonal offices and its central office, which include a retired judge. The rejection letter gives the address.
3. Grievance officer. You can also complain to LIC’s grievance redressal officer; insurers must resolve complaints within 14 days.
4. IRDAI Bima Bharosa. If unresolved, register the complaint on IRDAI’s Bima Bharosa portal or call the IRDAI toll-free number 155255.
5. Insurance Ombudsman. For claims up to ₹50 lakh, file with the ombudsman within one year of LIC’s rejection or of no reply within 30 days. The ombudsman’s service costs nothing.
6. Consumer commission or court remains an option.

Key takeaways

• Inform the servicing branch promptly with the policy number and the date, place and cause of death.
• Every claim needs Claim Form A (3783), the death certificate, the policy bond, an NEFT mandate and the claimant’s KYC.
• Death within three years is an early claim: expect verification and Forms B, B1, C and E.
• After three years, Section 45 means the policy cannot be questioned on any ground.
• IRDAI deadlines are 15 days without investigation and 45 days with it, with interest for delay.
• If rejected, appeal to LIC’s review committee, then Bima Bharosa or the Insurance Ombudsman.
• Check whether your family’s cover is enough with the LIC term plan calculator.