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- Celebrity life insurance debacles
- November 10th, 2011 4:04 PM
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By Rick A. Richards, Life Quotes, Inc.It is said that nothing in life is certain except death and taxes. The first is a guarantee, but the second is a gray area – especially if the deceased has the right kind of life insurance policy or will.
But the fact is, not many people like to talk about death and when they don’t, they don’t plan for it. That can leave a jumbled mess for the deceased’s heirs to clean up and that can often be contentious.
Do you have a will? They didn't.Celebrity deaths always draw a lot of attention. And when a celebrity dies young, they’re frozen in time. We always see them as vibrant, living life on their terms. Here are five notable celebrities who died without a will.
Rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 but the court fight over his estate continued until 2000. Because there wasn’t a will, the battle between the family, band members and managers continued because Hendrix’s music has continued to sell decades after his death.
Actor Dennis Hopper had planned for his family’s future, but he made a mistake that many people make – he didn’t update his life insurance policy when family circumstances changed. Hopper had a life insurance policy, but he was locked in a messy divorce with his wife, Victoria. Even though he wanted to remove his estranged wife’s name as a beneficiary from his life insurance policy, a judge refused, saying it was an issue to be decided in court. Hopper died of cancer before the hearing was held.
Actress Marilyn Monroe died in 1962 and the battle over her estate continued for decades, eventually winding up in the California legislature. There, a law was passed setting guidelines over who owns the images of a deceased celebrity and who has the responsibility of paying taxes on the sale of those images.
Industrialist Howard Hughes died in 1976 without a will. His reclusive nature complicated matters, especially after a will was found in the files of the Mormon Church that was ruled to be a forgery. A Nevada court settled his estate years later, dividing the assets among several cousins.
Former playmate and model Anna Nicole Smith died in 2007 without a will. The circumstances of her death were mysterious and played out in court. Because she didn’t have a will, the legal battle over custody of her children dragged on for more than two years.
Source: Compiled from a number of sources by Life Quotes, Inc. Staff
Review your life insurance policy after a major life change
It doesn’t just happen to average folks, either. High profile entertainers have died without life insurance or wills, leaving their families, friends, band mates and lovers to battle things out in court.
Life insurance needs to be viewed as an important part of estate planning and a way to preserve the family’s well-being. For entertainers, life insurance is way for them to sock away a portion of the money they’re making when the roller coaster ride of celebrity is going up so there will be a policy to draw cash from later on when the ride starts to go down.
And it’s not just the lack of a will or life insurance that can cause a problem. Even people who have planned ahead can create a mess for their heirs when they haven’t updated their life insurance or will. Divorce, the addition of new children or simply a change of mind in how an estate should be distributed, is reason enough to change a policy or will.
Because most celebrities aren’t born into wealth – even though they become wealthy – they don’t have the financial and estate planning background that emphasizes the importance of planning for the future.
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For instance, actor Heath Ledger died with a will, but he signed it before his daughter was born, potentially leaving her out of his estate. In addition to this, Ledger’s $10 million policy was disputed in court because his insurer, ING ReliaStar, delayed the payout because Ledger died before the two-year incontestability period had ended and there were questions as to whether his death was due to an accidental drug overdose or if it was intentional. There were also questions about whether his drug usage was disclosed in his application for life insurance. The dispute was finally settled in December 2009. - Category: Life Insurance, Most Popular
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