Life insurance in Massachusetts

How your policy is protected if an insurer fails

If a life or health insurer licensed in Massachusetts is declared insolvent and ordered liquidated, the Massachusetts Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association protects Massachusetts residents who own its policies and annuities. It usually arranges for another insurer to take over the policies, or continues them itself, subject to limits set by state law. Keep paying premiums in the meantime; coverage continues only while the policy stays in force.

Limits are as of October 4, 2026, from the association's FAQ. Each payee of a structured settlement annuity is covered up to $250,000 in present value. The annuity limit applies per owner per failed company, so someone holding three $250,000 annuities with the same insurer would be protected for only $250,000; the rest becomes a claim in the receivership.

The association is not a state agency. It is a private entity of the life and health insurers licensed in Massachusetts, created by the legislature as a safety net. It is not a substitute for choosing a well-managed, financially stable insurer, and Massachusetts law prohibits agents and companies from using the association in advertising or as an inducement to buy. See state life and health guaranty associations and what happens if your life insurance company fails.

Who regulates life insurance in Massachusetts

The Massachusetts Division of Insurance monitors insurers' solvency, licenses companies and producers, reviews rates and forms, handles consumer complaints, and coordinates the takeover and liquidation of insolvent insurers. Its toll-free line is 877-563-4467 (617-521-7794 in Boston), open weekdays from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Free look, grace periods and policy rules

• Free look: an individual life policy with a face amount under $25,000 must let you cancel within 10 days of delivery for a refund of any premium paid; the policy is then void from the beginning (M.G.L. c. 175, §187H). A policy that replaces existing life insurance carries a 20-day free look under the Division's replacement regulation (211 CMR 34.06), according to the NAIC's state chart of life insurance disclosure rules. For larger policies, the period is stated on your policy. See the free-look period: returning a policy for a refund.
• Grace period: state law requires a 30-day grace period for premiums due after the first policy year, during which the policy stays in force; the insurer may charge interest of up to 6% a year for the days used (M.G.L. c. 175, §132).
• Lapse notices: for an individual life policy with premiums payable less often than monthly, the policy cannot lapse for nonpayment until three months after the due date unless the insurer mailed a premium notice 10 to 45 days before the due date, to you or to someone you designated to receive notices (§110B).
• Refund of unearned premium: when the insured dies, the death benefit must include any premium paid for the period after the end of the policy month of death (§119B), except on single-premium policies.
• Interest on claims: death benefits from an individual life policy earn interest starting 30 days after the death, at the rate the insurer pays on proceeds left on deposit, or 6% if it doesn't offer one (§119C).

Taxes, estates and community property

Massachusetts has an estate tax but no inheritance tax. For deaths on or after January 1, 2023, an estate tax return is required when the gross estate exceeds $2,000,000, and every estate gets a $99,600 credit against the tax, according to the Department of Revenue's estate tax guide. That threshold is far below the federal exemption, so life insurance you own can push an estate over it; ownership through an irrevocable trust is the usual way to keep proceeds outside the taxable estate. See state estate and inheritance taxes and life insurance and talk to an estate attorney.

Massachusetts is not a community property state.

Finding a lost policy or unclaimed benefits

Start with the deceased's bank and credit card statements, mail and tax records, then use the free NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator. Property that companies can't deliver is turned over to the Unclaimed Property Division of the Massachusetts State Treasury after three years, including insurance proceeds. Search and claim at FindMassMoney.gov. If the insured lived or worked in New Hampshire, Rhode Island or Connecticut, check those states too. Our guides to how to find a lost life insurance policy and unclaimed life insurance money and state unclaimed property cover each step.

Life insurers based in Massachusetts

• MassMutual (Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company) is a policyholder-owned mutual based in Springfield.
• John Hancock is based in Boston and is the U.S. arm of Canada's Manulife.
• Boston Mutual Life is based at 120 Royall Street in Canton.
• SBLI is the brand of The Savings Bank Mutual Life Insurance Company of Massachusetts.

Where to get help

• Massachusetts Division of Insurance: 877-563-4467, mass.gov/orgs/division-of-insurance, One Federal Street, Suite 700, Boston, MA 02110-2012. See the division's instructions for filing an insurance complaint and our guide to how to file a complaint against a life insurer.
• Massachusetts Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association: 413-744-8483, malifega.org, P.O. Box 3171, Springfield, MA 01101-3171.
• Unclaimed property: the State Treasury's FindMassMoney.gov.