Why nearly ₹8,974 crore in insurance money is unclaimed

Government information cited by The Economic Times put unclaimed funds held by life and general insurers at ₹8,973.89 crore as of 28 February 2026. These amounts can include maturity benefits, death claims, survival benefits, premium refunds, and other payments that have not reached the policyholder or beneficiary.

An insurance amount is treated as unclaimed after it remains unpaid beyond the applicable period. Amounts held for more than ten years may be transferred to the Senior Citizens’ Welfare Fund, but eligible beneficiaries can retain the right to claim them subject to the governing rules and time limits.

Why insurance money becomes unclaimed

Policies can run for decades. During that time, people move homes, change phone numbers and bank accounts, lose documents, or forget to update nominees. Sometimes a family does not know a policy exists; in other cases, a refund or claim stalls because records are incomplete.

Group insurance creates another blind spot when employees or their families are unaware of employer-provided cover and do not know whom to contact after leaving a job or after a death.

How to begin tracing a possible policy

Search the insurer’s unclaimed-amount facility and IRDAI’s Bima Bharosa resources using the requested policyholder details. Old email, premium debits, tax records, employer documents, and bank statements may help identify the insurer or policy number.

Once a likely policy is found, obtain the insurer’s current claim checklist. The required evidence depends on whether the payment is a maturity amount, refund, death claim, or another benefit and whether a valid nominee is recorded.

Prevent the trail from disappearing

Keep policy numbers, insurer contacts, coverage types, renewal dates, nominee status, and document locations in one inventory. Tell a trusted person that the inventory exists and review it annually. Do not share or store insurer passwords, OTPs, or banking credentials.