What is an Absolute Beneficiary?

An absolute beneficiary is a beneficiary of a life insurance policy or safeguard-fund, whose beneficiary status cannot be revoked without their written consent. It depends on the terms of the policy whether the beneficiary is absolute or whether she can be altered. If the policy mentions that the beneficiary is absolute, then the policyholder or any other party cannot change or eliminate the benefits of said beneficiary. Their right to the benefits is absolute and cannot be eliminated.

How Does an Absolute Beneficiary Work?

Life insurance policies and other financial instruments require the name of beneficiaries, who will receive the benefits upon the death of the policyholders. If someone requests a policy with an absolute beneficiary, they wont be able to change the name of the beneficiary later in their own discretion. In order to change the name, they must get written permission from the original beneficiary. The same is applicable to the absolute beneficiaries of a trust, employee benefit plan, or any other contract that absolute beneficiary clause. As the rights of the absolute beneficiary cannot be altered without the written consent of the beneficiary, people often add a contingency beneficiary to be on the safe side. If the person who is named as the absolute beneficiary dies, becomes physically or mentally unfit to take the legal control before the policy is redeemed, unable to be located, or refuse the inheritance, only then the contingency beneficiary is allowed to receive the benefits. The provision of the absolute beneficiary is often used in divorce proceedings settlements or liability cases to avoid any ambiguity over beneficiary rights. It provides a sense of security to the benefitting party as it ensures the other party wont be able to revoke their rights to benefit in the later dates even if they want to. In this way, their rights are secured and cannot be changed without their consent. The agreement and settlements with absolute beneficiary should be drafted with caution and under the guidance of a professional expert. Once a name is put as absolute beneficiary it cannot be changed under any circumstances such as divorce, estrangement, disownment, or any other form of disagreement. It can only be revoked if the beneficiary voluntarily gives up their right to the benefit, but in reality, that is very unlikely if not impossible.

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