Can I make the beneficiary of the life insurance policy pay the funeral bill?
No. Once the insurance company verifies the identity of the beneficiary it is that person’s decision on what they want done with the proceeds from the life insurance claim. Such as: a. They could assign some or all of the life insurance proceeds over to the funeral home to pay funeral expenses or b. They have the right to refuse to participate in planning or paying for the funeral and may keep the entire life insurance proceeds for themselves. So choose your beneficiary carefully. When choosing a beneficiary consider avoiding children under the age of 18 because they can not assign their benefit and people with ‘unstable’ or ‘problematic’ lifestyles. You may want the beneficiary to pay for the funeral expenses so that you or other family & friends don’t have to, but there is no way to force them to do it.
