What Happens When The Beneficiary Of Life Insurance Dies? 
When the primary beneficiary of life insurance dies , the death benefit is split up among the other primary beneficiaries , if there are any others on the policy . If there are no other primary beneficiaries , the money goes to the contingent beneficiaries . If there are no living contingent beneficiaries , the money goes to the estate upon the death of the insured . To avoid the money going to the estate , the owner of the policy can select a new primary beneficiary , or just be sure that there are other beneficiaries that are still alive , to receive the life insurance proceeds someday . It only takes a simple form to designate a new beneficiary . 