What is the limitation period applicable to actions related to a life insurance contract?

Verified 24 November 2025 - Public Service / Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The limitation period shall be time beyond which the implementation of a right or a legal claim is not more admissible. For example, if you bring a legal action after the expiry of the limitation period, the court will refuse to consider your claim.

The performance of the life insurance contract may give rise to disputes between the insurance company and the following persons:

  • Subscriber (for example, litigation related to refusal to change insured or beneficiary)
  • Insurance policy (for example, litigation related to the insurer's refusal to return funds following the insured's waiver of his contract)
  • Beneficiary (for example, litigation related to the insurer's refusal to pay the savings following the death of the insured)
  • Third parties (for example, litigation related to the challenge of beneficiary status to the person named in the contract).

In the field of insurance, there is a 2 years which applies to the actions arising from the contract. We're talking about the biennial prescription.

In general, actions related to the execution of an insurance contract shall be introduced within a period of 2 years from the event which is the basis of the request.

Example :

When the life insurance contract has expired and the beneficiary (who is also the policyholder) asks the insurer to pay him the accumulated savings, the event that is the basis of the request is the expiry of the contract. In this case, the 2-year period begins to run from the end date of the life insurance contract.

The limitation period is longer when you are the beneficiary a life insurance contract that has been taken out by another person. In this case, the limitation period is 10 years from the date of death of the insured.

Example :

When the beneficiary asks the insurer to pay the premium, the event that is the basis of the request is the death of the insured who has taken out the contract. In this case, the 10-year period begins from the date of death of the insured.

But if you are the beneficiary and you were not aware of the insured's death at the time it occurred, the limitation period will begin on the day you become aware of the death.

There is a limit to this postponement of the starting point of the limitation period: your action will not be admissible if it is filed more than 30 years after the death of the insured, even if you did not know about it earlier.

The starting point of the limitation period is also delayed for the insurer when it has not been aware of the risk due to the reluctance, theomissionor the false declaration of the insured. In these cases, the starting point is the day on which the insurer became aware of the risk.

The limitation period may be interrupted by one of the following events:

  • Recognition by the insurer of the right of the insured or recognition of the debt
  • Legal action taken
  • Sending a command or seizure
  • Sending an electronic registered or registered letter, with acknowledgement of receipt, by the insurer to the insured in respect of the claim for payment of the premium
  • Sending an electronic registered letter or registered letter, with acknowledgement of receipt, by the insured to the insurer regarding the settlement of the indemnity.

Please note

To protect the insured, any life insurance contract must recall the limitation periods for actions arising from the contract. The information must make it possible to identify the starting points of the prescription and the causes of interruption of the prescription.

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