As you decide to get divorced, things get complicated. In joint life insurance, one names their spouse as the beneficiary. When you get divorced, you may no longer want to share the policy with your ex-spouse. You are then left with two options: cancel the policy or let your spouse take it over. * If you decide to cancel the policy, and your policy is whole life insurance, you may get the surrender value. This is the cash value you receive when you want to cancel your policy. * If you decide that one of the spouses will take over the policy, you need to contact your insurer and sign over the policy. Once the transfer succeeds, the one who takes over can change the name of the beneficiary. In case the couples continue their policy after the divorce, they can still benefit from the policy if one of them passes away.