Divorce and Life Insurance

*Updated October 15th, 2025

There’s a common statistic which says that roughly fifty percent of all marriages in the United States will end in divorce.

If you’re among the fifty percent, because you’re in the process of or have gone through a divorce, chances are good that your life insurance policy wasn’t a major point of concern. After all, when you’re discussing custody or arguing over who gets the house and who gets the dog, insurance policies don’t seem all that important.

Nevertheless, one of the questions that will eventually arise is what to do about the spouse who is the designated beneficiary on your life insurance policy.

Unfortunately, there is no one true solution to this issue. In some cases, you may not have a choice in how the policy should be handled, because the divorce settlement will dictate that, perhaps by preventing any changes to beneficiaries or ownership, or making subsequent changes invalid. Alternatively, the court could rule that in order to ensure that child support or alimony continues, the life insurance policy must be maintained for a specific length of time. The court can also rule on which party will maintain ownership of the policy, and therefore has the ultimate decision on beneficiaries.

In some cases, courts also establish a lapse provision, which ruling will generally specify that if the policy lapses, the divorced spouse and children are entitled to a percentage of the policyholder’s estate that is usually equal to the death benefit of the lapsed policy.

We aren’t lawyers, and wouldn’t presume to offer legal advice, but if you are in the process of a divorce, we suggest you bring up any life insurance policies during the settlement negotiations. Doing so now could save a lot more heartache later.

After Divorce: A Quick Look at Auto Insurance and Your Insurance Rate

While you’re reviewing life insurance, it’s also smart to revisit auto insurance—divorce can affect your car insurance rate in a few ways:

• Household changes (removing a driver, changing garaging address, different mileage) can shift your insurance rate.

• Marital status may be a pricing factor with some insurance companies, which can impact what drivers pay for coverage.

Car Insurance Rates by Age and Gender—What Typically Influences Costs

Across age groups, car insurance rates by age tend to decrease from early driving years into middle age, then can rise again later in life. For example, teen drivers pay more due to limited experience, while drivers near age 60 often see lower rates with clean records. Some car insurance companies in certain states consider rates by gender; in those markets, studies have sometimes shown young male drivers may face a higher rate than a comparable female driver, though rules vary and some states restrict considering gender as a factor. The net effect: car insurance rates vary widely by driver profile.

Common terms you’ll see in quotes: average car insurance, average annual premium, and auto insurance rates compared to the national average.

Who Pays More for Auto Insurance?

Pricing depends on record, location, vehicle, credit tier (in some states), and coverage. In some markets and cohorts, men pay more when young, while women pay similar or less; however, many factors beyond gender drive average car insurance rates. The safest summary is that age affects risk, and pricing follows risk—especially for male and female drivers under age 20.

Ways to Save on Car Insurance

• Shop multiple car insurance companies for average car insurance comparisons; drivers pay an average very different from one carrier to the next.

• Ask about telematics/usage-based insurance to potentially lower car insurance costs with safe driving.

• Re-rate after household changes; you might save money on car insurance by adjusting vehicles, coverages, and deductibles.

• Bundle home and auto insurance where available to reduce auto insurance premiums.