SECP Launches Life Insurance Policy Finder to Help Families Claim Unpaid Benefits

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has taken a major step to strengthen consumer protection and ease public access to life insurance benefits with the launch of the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service. The initiative has been developed in collaboration with the Central Depository Company (CDC) and the Insurance Association of Pakistan (IAP). It aims to solve a longstanding challenge: families often remain unaware that their deceased loved ones had life insurance policies, leaving rightful claims unclaimed for years.

Launching on December 15, 2025, the new service provides a secure and structured way for citizens to trace life insurance policies of deceased relatives and initiate the claims process. According to the SECP, this initiative is part of a broader effort to strengthen transparency, protect beneficiaries, and ensure that insurance benefits reach the people they were intended for.

How the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service Works

The mechanism is intentionally simple to ensure broad accessibility. Individuals can send the CNIC number of the deceased person via SMS to 99833. If the system identifies any life insurance policy, whether conventional life insurance or family takaful, the relevant insurer or operator will directly contact the beneficiary to guide them through the verification and claims process.

This design removes the complexity that families often face when they do not know which insurance company to approach or whether a policy even exists. It also closes the information gap that has historically prevented legal heirs from accessing the financial support meant for them.

Why SECP Introduced the Policy Finder Service

For decades, Pakistan’s insurance sector has faced a recurring issue: beneficiaries remain unaware of insurance policies taken out by their relatives, especially when documentation is misplaced or the policyholder never communicated details to the family. SECP officials say this results in millions of rupees remaining unclaimed every year.

By introducing the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service, the regulator aims to resolve several key problems. First, it ensures consumer protection, giving rightful heirs a simple way to discover existing policies. Second, it supports transparency across insurers by centralizing policy verification. Third, it improves operational efficiency, as insurance companies now receive structured, authenticated queries rather than fragmented requests.

Mandatory Participation From All Insurers and Takaful Operators

To guarantee uniform adoption, the SECP has issued a circular mandating participation from all life insurance companies and family takaful operators. Under this directive, insurers must:

• Respond promptly to public queries received through the system
• Adhere to a standard turnaround time (TAT)
• Submit and regularly update required policy data

The circular has been published on the SECP website, ensuring full regulatory clarity and industry-wide compliance.

What Happens After a Policy Is Found?

Once a policy is matched through the CNIC-based search, the beneficiary will be contacted by the relevant insurer. The company will then guide them through identity verification, documentation, and claims submission. This streamlined structure is expected to significantly reduce delays and confusion in the claims process.

What This Means for Consumers and the Insurance Industry

The introduction of the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service marks a major shift in how beneficiaries access insurance information in Pakistan. It simplifies the public’s engagement with insurers, reduces the risk of unclaimed policies, and improves the trust required to expand life insurance penetration across the country.

For the insurance industry, the initiative sets a new benchmark for transparency and data standardization. As insurers integrate their policy data with the CDC-assisted system, claim settlement procedures are expected to become faster and more reliable.

Overall, the service positions Pakistan’s insurance ecosystem toward greater modernization, ensuring that financial protection products fulfill their core purpose, supporting families during difficult times.