Assurance-vie: cases where the capital is not paid out

Assurance-vie payouts are not made to the designated beneficiary in five situations: the death benefit does not apply (suicide in the first year), the beneficiary is convicted, there is no identifiable beneficiary, the contract is void (taken out on the life of a minor under 12 or an adult under guardianship), or it is terminated (unpaid premiums). This list is provided by the official information sheet on service-public.gouv.fr. This page details each case, including what the information sheet says and what it does not say.

It does not cover the payment delay when everything proceeds normally, nor the taxation of the capital received, nor the list of required documents. Each topic has its own page on our website.

Cases at a glance

The insured's suicide in the first year

The official policy statement is straightforward: "If the insured commits suicide during the first year of the contract, the death benefit does not apply."«

An exception is written in the same sheet: for a assurance-vie contract with a surrender value, the insurer must nevertheless pay the accumulated savings.

The information sheet says nothing about contracts without surrender value, nor how the starting point of the first year is calculated. These points are found in the contract and should be requested from the insurer.

The convicted beneficiary

A beneficiary convicted of intentionally causing the death of the insured or policyholder is no longer eligible for the benefits of the contract. The information sheet specifies that if other individuals have been designated as beneficiaries, they will be able to receive the capital stipulated in the contract.

The document does not detail the procedure or the time when the conviction must have occurred.

No identifiable beneficiary

When the beneficiary cannot be identified, the information sheet states that the capital "falls into the ordinary estate of the deceased insured." According to the sheet, the planned capital is then not transferred under the tax framework of the assurance-vie contract: it follows the rules of inheritance.

The situations that lead to this are, according to the information sheet:

• an unfulfilled beneficiary clause; ;
• a clause too vague to identify the person; ;
• a predeceased beneficiary, when the clause does not provide for the mechanism of representation.

The clause may provide for representation "in the event of predecease" and "in the event of renunciation." Without this mention, the record classifies the predeceased beneficiary among the cases where no beneficiary can be identified. Drafting the clause is explained on the page "Beneficiary Clause: Drafting and Modifying.".

Contract void: minor under 12 years of age, adult under guardianship

The information sheet on cases of non-payment states: "In certain cases, the law stipulates the nullity of the contract taken out" on the life of a minor under 12 years of age or an adult under guardianship. The information sheet on taking out a assurance-vie policy makes the same point, using different wording: taking out a policy is prohibited on the life of a minor under 12 years of age, and on the life of an adult under guardianship, except for certain funeral financing plans. It also prohibits taking out a policy on the life of a person placed in a psychiatric hospital.

Each entry retains its own vocabulary: one refers to nullity, the other to prohibition. We do not compare the two beyond what they explicitly state. Details of the roles of policyholder, insured, and beneficiary are found on the page "Life Insurance: Policyholder, Insured, Beneficiary".

Unpaid bonuses

The information sheet on non-payment states: "In the event of non-payment of premiums, the contract may be terminated." The information sheet on how the contract works gives the deadlines:

The document does not specify the basis on which the threshold of 15 % is assessed. We do not quantify it in the example below.

Numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. Marc opened a contract on January 15, 2025, and has been paying his premiums continuously since then (assuming the two years of payments are counted from the opening date). The premium due on March 1, 2026, is not paid (assuming). The insurer sends him a registered letter on March 13, 2026 (assuming).

Issue. Until what date can Marc pay, and is the 2-year criterion, which allows the contract to be maintained with reduced coverage, met?

Strategy. Apply the deadlines in the contract operating sheet: 10 days after the expiry date, then 40 days from the date the letter was sent.

Result.

As of the deadline of April 22, 2026, Marc has 15 months since the account was opened: the 2-year criterion is not met, as there are 268 days before January 15, 2027. The alternative criterion of 15 % of premiums paid depends on the basis used, which the document does not specify: it must be examined in the contract. Assumptions: all dates are chosen for the sake of example; the periods are counted from date to date. This profile is not a real customer.

What changes depending on your situation

• The subscription date. It sets the first year of the contract for the case of suicide.
• The presence of a buyback value. It is a condition for the payment of the accumulated savings.
• Drafting the clause. An unfulfilled or imprecise clause refers the capital to the ordinary inheritance.
• The number of designated beneficiaries. If one of them is convicted, the others can receive the capital.
• The insured's profile. Minors under 12 years of age, adults under guardianship: subscriptions are subject to specific rules.
• Bonus tracking. The schedule for the registered letter and the 40-day period can be found on the contract.

These points are examined on a case-by-case basis, based on the contract and its clause. No outcome is guaranteed.