What provision states that if both the insured and the primary beneficiary die in the same accident and it cannot be determined who died first, the insured will be presumed to have survived the beneficiary and proceeds will be paid to the named contingent beneficiary of the insured or to the insured's estate?

• A. Proceeds go to insured's spouse
• B. Common Disaster Clause
• C. Simultaneous Death Clause
• D. Beneficiary Designation Clause

Answer: (B)

The main concept here is how life insurance handles simultaneous deaths. When the insured and the primary beneficiary die in the same accident and we can’t determine who died first, the provision used is the Common Disaster Clause. This clause presumes the insured survived the beneficiary, so the death benefit is paid to the insured’s contingent beneficiary or to the insured’s estate. This avoids ambiguity and ensures the funds go to someone who is alive, per the policy’s design. Some texts use the term Simultaneous Death Clause for the same idea, but the effect is the same: the proceeds go to the contingent beneficiary or estate rather than to the deceased primary beneficiary.