Who is entitled to the cash values in a life insurance policy?

The cash value in a life insurance policy generally belongs to the policy owner. This is because the policy owner is the individual or entity that purchased the policy and funds it, which includes making premium payments that contribute to the cash value accumulation.

Cash value is a feature of whole or universal life insurance policies that allows the policy owner to build savings over time. The owner can access this cash value through loans or withdrawals while the policy is in force. If the policy owner decides to surrender the policy, they can also receive the accumulated cash value. The beneficiary, while entitled to the death benefit upon the policyholder's passing, does not have a claim to the cash value while the insured is alive unless specified otherwise. The insurance company holds the cash value in trust for the owner but does not have entitlement to it. Finally, the insured individual may be different from the policy owner in certain scenarios, particularly in cases where the owner may not be the insured person themselves, reinforcing that the rights to the cash value pertain to the owner of the policy.