To find out if someone has life insurance on you, start with three practical steps: request your consumer file from MIB, Inc., check whether you’re enrolled in group coverage through an employer or professional association, and write directly to any insurance carrier you suspect may have issued a policy. Unauthorized individual policies are uncommon because most states require your written consent, so the likeliest source of a policy you didn’t know about is a group plan you were enrolled in automatically.
Why Unauthorized Policies Are Rare
Every state requires the buyer of a life insurance policy to have an “insurable interest” in the person being insured, meaning a genuine financial stake in that person staying alive. Close family members, business partners, and creditors with outstanding debts qualify. Strangers do not. On top of that, the vast majority of states require the proposed insured person’s signature on the application. The main exceptions are parents buying coverage on minor children and certain employer-sponsored group plans, which is why group coverage is worth checking first.
These rules exist partly to block what the industry calls stranger-originated life insurance, or STOLI, in which investors recruit someone to buy a policy they don’t need and then take control of it to collect the death benefit. The NAIC adopted model legislation targeting these schemes, and nearly every state now prohibits them. A policy taken out on you without your consent may be void from the start.
Request Your MIB Consumer File
The fastest way to check whether someone has applied for individual life insurance using your personal information is to request your file from MIB, Inc., formerly the Medical Information Bureau. MIB keeps a database of coded medical and lifestyle information submitted during individual life, health, and disability insurance applications. If someone applied for a policy on your life through a carrier that uses MIB’s services, that application likely generated a record.
You’re entitled to one free MIB consumer file every 12 months. You can request it online at mib.com, by phone at 866-692-6901, or by mail to MIB, Inc., 50 Braintree Hill Park, Suite 400, Braintree, MA 02184-8734. MIB must provide your file within 15 days of receiving your request.1Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. MIB, Inc.
If you’ve never applied for individual life or health insurance through a carrier that uses MIB, there may be no file to retrieve. But a file you weren’t expecting is a strong signal that someone used your information to apply for coverage.
Check Employer and Association Coverage
Group life insurance through a job or professional association is the most common way a policy can exist without you actively choosing it. Many employers enroll workers automatically in a basic group term life plan as part of a benefits package, sometimes without asking for a separate signature. Employer-provided group term life insurance up to $50,000 is tax-free under IRC Section 79, and any employer-paid coverage above that amount creates taxable imputed income based on IRS premium tables.2Internal Revenue Service. Group-Term Life Insurance
To find out whether you’re covered, start with your benefits enrollment summary or a recent pay stub. Imputed income from group life coverage above $50,000 sometimes appears as its own line item. Your HR department or association benefits coordinator can confirm your enrollment status, the coverage amount, the named beneficiaries, and whether you can raise or lower the coverage. This is also worth checking if you recently changed jobs, since some group policies end shortly after employment does.
Write to Carriers You Suspect
If you have reason to believe a specific insurer issued a policy on your life, contact that company’s customer service department in writing. Include your full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and any details you know about the potential policyholder. Most carriers require a written request with a copy of your government-issued ID before releasing information about policies where you’re the insured.
Expect this to take time. Insurers have compliance procedures, and responses are not immediate. Keep copies of every letter or email you send and every reply you receive. If a carrier confirms a policy exists, ask for the policy number, the owner’s name, the beneficiary, the coverage amount, and the date it was issued. That information will tell you whether the policy is legitimate or needs further investigation.
Search Unclaimed Property Databases
Unclaimed property databases can surface life insurance benefits that were never claimed, including policies that matured, lapsed, or were turned over to state treasuries. This search is most useful when you suspect an old or forgotten policy rather than one being actively maintained. The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators runs MissingMoney.com, which consolidates records from most state unclaimed property offices into a single search. You can also search your state’s unclaimed property office directly.
The search takes basic identifying information such as your name and, optionally, your Social Security number. If a match appears, the state runs a claims process that typically involves proof of identity and documentation showing you’re entitled to the funds.
What the NAIC Policy Locator Does and Doesn’t Do
The NAIC operates a Life Insurance Policy Locator that searches participating insurers’ records for policies and annuity contracts. One important limitation: the tool is designed for locating policies on someone who has already died, not for living individuals searching for coverage on themselves. Submitting a request requires the deceased person’s information from a death certificate, including their Social Security number, date of birth, and date of death.3National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Learn How to Use the NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator
If you’re a beneficiary or family member trying to locate a deceased person’s coverage, this is the right tool. If you’re a living person trying to discover policies on your own life, your MIB file and direct carrier contact are the more productive paths.
What to Do If You Find a Policy You Didn’t Authorize
Discovering that someone took out a life insurance policy on you without your consent is a form of identity theft. The response should be immediate and documented.
- Notify the insurance carrier in writing that the policy was taken out without your consent. Ask that the policy be investigated and canceled, and request written confirmation of any action taken.
- File an identity theft report at IdentityTheft.gov, the federal government’s central reporting site. It generates an FTC Identity Theft Report and creates a personalized recovery plan with step-by-step instructions.4Federal Trade Commission. IdentityTheft.gov
- File a formal complaint with your state insurance department. Every state has a fraud division or consumer complaint process, and each department’s website has intake forms and specific instructions.
- File a police report if the unauthorized policy involved forged signatures or stolen personal information. A local report creates an official record that supports disputes with the insurer and any later legal action.
Keep a running file of every communication, every confirmation number, and every response. If the insurer stalls, your state insurance department can intervene on your behalf. The FTC doesn’t resolve individual cases directly, but the information you provide feeds a law enforcement database that helps investigators identify patterns of insurance fraud.