How do you find out if someone had a life insurance policy before they died?

Answer 1:
Check among all their important documents, the safety deposit box, call any and all agents or companies they may have done business with for auto and home insurance, investments, etirement planning, etc. Call the lawyer, the accountant etc. 4 lifeguild
See the Related Link for "Steve Shorr" to the bottom for the answer.
Here's are some tips:
First, check out WWW.POLICYLOCATOR.COM. They have a large database of insurance applicants available to the public and the cost is relatively cheap considering the value of what they might uncover. You will need to provide a death certificate and a notarized application - probably a good thing from a privacy perspective.
If that doesn't work try:
If the house and car were insured, start with the local agents who sold those policies. Insurance companies usually keep track of customer names and Social Security numbers.
If the policy was active, a premium notice eventually will come in the mail. Look for cancelled insurance checks.
Private firms specialize in finding lost life insurance for a fee. Search the Internet for "Life Benefits Search" or "Lost Life Insurance Finder."
Try this POLICY LOCATOR service from e-Services.
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The decedent's name is searched against our Policy Locator database.
It contains over 110 million records representing inquiries submitted on individually underwritten life insurance applications processed during the last nine years.
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Application activity often leads to policies - matches against this database are immediately identified and returned to you. Policy Locator provides an efficient and effective alternative to labor intensive manual searches. Our extensive historical archives can trace paths from merged and acquired companies, revealing the identity of the newly named parent. And our industry-leading search technology produces the best possible results.
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It Happens Every Day
Life insurance is often purchased to protect against loss of income, but policyholders commonly fail to inform the beneficiary(s) of the policy's existence. As a result, many policies go unclaimed based on long dormancy periods or lack of awareness. Insurance companies would like to distribute what is rightfully due, but the responsibility to claim benefits lies with the survivors. It is estimated that over $1 billion of insurance proceeds currently could be claimed by beneficiaries from North American insurance companies..
Check the bank account statements for egular withdrawls... it may be a few years back for 20 year pay policies. Do follow up from there. Check with family friends, sometime the owner might have discussed it with them.
Call the suspect companies and ask.
if you have the persons info and know what company he may have been insured with, you can call the insurance company claims department and ask. They will only tell you if he was insured and nothing more without evidence that you are privvy to that info. Also, call his insurance agent and ask.
Try the suggestions at these links
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/Insurance/Insureyourlife/P35421.asp
http://www.mib.com/html/lost-life-insurance.html
http://www.iii.org/individuals/life/help/locatelost/

Answer 2:
You are gonna have to find the papers bc the company will want the policy number. You will also have to send a death certificate somewhere to collect.

Answer 3:
You will need to contact the insurance commissioner's office in the state she resided when she took the policy.