Life insurance in Tennessee

Tennessee has no estate tax and ended its inheritance tax after 2015, so for most families the life insurance questions here are about protection, claim timing and finding lost money. The state also lets married couples opt in to community property through a trust, a choice that can affect who owns a policy.

How your policy is protected if an insurer fails

The Tennessee Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association was created in July 1989 by the Tennessee Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association Act (Tenn. Code Ann. 56-12-201 and following). Insurers and HMOs licensed in Tennessee to write life insurance, annuities or health insurance are members. The association can act only after a company is placed into liquidation; it then continues coverage, transfers policies to a sound insurer, or pays claims, with money assessed from the other members. The limits below are from the association's FAQ and its official notice of coverage, as checked on October 4, 2026.

The overall limit applies no matter how many policies, of whatever type, you had with the failed company. Three $100,000 annuities with one insolvent insurer, for example, would be covered only up to $250,000; the remainder becomes a claim in the receivership. Policies from insurers not licensed in Tennessee, fraternal benefit certificates, unallocated annuity contracts, self-insured employer plans, interest yields above a statutory average and the non-guaranteed parts of variable products are not covered.

Before liquidation, a troubled insurer may spend months in court-supervised rehabilitation, during which benefit payments and your right to surrender a policy for cash can be restricted. Keep paying premiums throughout. Guaranty coverage is a backstop, not a substitute for choosing a financially strong company: the association is a private entity made up of member insurers, not a state agency, and Tennessee law bars agents and insurers from using it in advertising or as a sales inducement. More in state life and health guaranty associations and what happens if your life insurance company fails.

Who regulates life insurance in Tennessee

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI) licenses insurers and agents, reviews policy forms, monitors insurer finances and runs a Consumer Insurance Services division that answers questions and investigates complaints.

Free look, grace periods and policy rules

• Free look: if a new policy replaces existing life insurance, Tennessee's replacement rule gives you 20 days after delivery to return it for a refund (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0780-01-24-.07, as summarized in the NAIC's state disclosure chart). For other policies, the right-to-return period is printed on the first page. See the free-look period: returning a policy for a refund.
• Grace period: according to TDCI, Tennessee policies have a 30-day grace period for missed premiums, during which you remain covered even if the payment has not yet been made.
• Claim payment and interest: TDCI says an insurer has 60 days to pay a death claim, and if a claim is not paid within 15 days of the date of death, the company must also pay interest. If a payment drags on, ask the insurer in writing for the status and the interest calculation, and see interest on late life insurance claims.

Taxes, estates and community property

Tennessee has no estate tax, and according to the Department of Revenue its inheritance tax is no longer imposed for deaths after December 31, 2015. Only the federal estate tax applies, with a $15,000,000 per-person exclusion in 2026, per the IRS.

Tennessee is not a community property state, but it is one of a few states that let married couples opt in: assets placed in a Tennessee community property trust are treated as community property. If a policy or its proceeds are held that way, ownership and beneficiary rights can differ from the usual rules, so work with an estate attorney. See community property states and life insurance and state estate and inheritance taxes and life insurance.

Finding a lost policy or unclaimed benefits

TDCI promotes the NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator, a free service that forwards a request to licensed life insurers, which respond within 60 days if they find a match. According to TDCI, the service located policies with $107,757,080 in benefits for Tennesseans in 2025, a record. Our guide to how to find a lost life insurance policy covers the other steps. Benefits no one claims are eventually sent to the Tennessee Department of Treasury's Unclaimed Property Program, searchable free at claimittn.gov. Tennessee borders eight states; if the insured lived in Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas or Missouri, search there too. More in unclaimed life insurance money and state unclaimed property.

Life insurers based in Tennessee

Unum, the worksite benefits insurer, is headquartered in Chattanooga. Tennessee Farmers Life, part of Tennessee Farmers Insurance Companies, is based in Columbia.

Where to get help

• TDCI Consumer Insurance Services: 800-342-4029 or 615-741-2218; 500 James Robertson Parkway, Nashville, TN 37243; tn.gov/commerce/insurance.
• Complaints: contact the insurer first and ask for a written explanation. If you believe a claim was wrongly denied or have another problem with an insurer or agent, use TDCI's online complaint form or print and mail it. Our guide to how to file a complaint against a life insurer lists what to attach.
• Guaranty association: Tennessee Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association, 1320 Adams Street, Suite 1400, Nashville, TN 37208, 615-242-8758, tnlifega.org.