Money may be the last thing on your mind, if a loved one has died. But even before grieving is over, you may find yourself faced with the harsh reality. There’s no way one can keep away financial worries, and that can be shattering when you’re vulnerable. That's what happened to Shalini Seth.

Forty-eight year-old Seth was devastated when her husband, a senior management executive, succumbed to an accident recently. But being practical, she rallied around to ensure she got all insurance benefits due to her, so that her son’s higher education was not hampered. But that wasn’t an easy task. She said, “I called the agent who sold the policy to my husband, but he told me that he was no longer with the same company and so couldn’t help me. I didn’t know what documents I needed to submit, to make the claim.”

Most nominees of insurance policies may be in a similar position. Actually, a simple call to the insurance company will tell you what documents are needed. But most of these documents need to be collected at the time of death itself. So knowing beforehand what these documents are will a a last minute dash from pillar to post.

According to a recent survey, 15% of the nominees of an insurance policy did not know how to make a claim, 60% relied on their agent to do the needful. But today, when agents are moving from one insurance company to another so swiftly, it doesn’t make sense to rely on your agent for a claim you may have to make, some years later.

Chief of Customer Service & Operations, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, Anita Pai said, “Correct and complete documentation is an integral part of the claims process. It is very important that a person making the claim, keeps all the documents safely and readily accessible, as this will help settle the claim quickly.”

So there is no substitute for putting your paperwork in order. There are several documents to be submitted in order to make a claim (see box).