Insurance revenge is something that most people do not even know exists. Even couples that have gone through a divorce usually have never heard the term insurance revenge. But just because it is not well known, it does happen. And it happens to a lot of people without the term of insurance revenge being attached to it.
Suppose, for example, that a couple decides to get a divorce. The husband covers his spouse’s health insurance under his employer’s policy. However, during the divorce proceedings, the husband wants to cause as much pain to his spouse as possible, and he cancels her health insurance without her knowledge. This would be an example of insurance revenge in divorce.
There are, however, many other examples that could also be considered insurance revenge during or just prior to divorce. If any of the following occurs during your divorce proceedings and prior to the final divorce decree is issued by the judge, you should immediately inform your divorce lawyer:
- Attempting to create a false insurance claim aimed at the target spouse by intentionally damaging property
- Taking the target spouse off health insurance policies without their knowledge
- Canceling or lowering the target spouse’s car insurance policy without their knowledge, leaving them unprotected in case of accident
- Voiding a homeowner’s or renter’s insurance policy and then destroying property owned by the targeted spouse
- Withdrawing money from a whole life insurance policy without the target spouse’s knowledge, or outright canceling the life insurance policy
- Taking all an insurance claim payout and not sharing half of it with the target spouse
Again, if anything similar to the above happens to you during your divorce, your divorce lawyer might be able to stop it. Therefore, make sure to inform your lawyer immediately so that they can inform the court.
What Do Courts Think about Insurance Revenge?
An affidavit or certification of insurance coverage is always filed with the court as part of the divorce complaint pleadings. This affidavit needs to state if there were any changes to any insurance coverage within the past 90 days. What this does is put each party on the record and under oath that there have been no changes or cancellations with any insurance policy. If a spouse either lies on the affidavit or later cancels a policy for insurance revenge, they could get into a lot of trouble with the court. During divorce proceedings, the court requires that both parties maintain the status quo as much as possible. This includes the continuation of insurance policies and coverage.
How To Protect Yourself from Insurance Revenge?
Deciding to get a divorce can be one of the hardest decisions to make. Even though your spouse of many years used to be reasonable, sometimes going through a divorce makes people act irrationally and do hurtful things. To protect yourself from insurance revenge, here are some suggestions:
- Keep financial and insurance records in a safe location.
- Keep updated copies of your three credit reports.
- Purchase a separate car insurance policy for yourself and your vehicle, one over which your spouse does not have any control.
- Change your insurance beneficiaries if that is a decision that you have made.
Marlton Divorce Lawyers at Burnham Douglass Protect Your Rights through the Divorce Process
If you wish to end your marriage, reach out to the Marlton divorce lawyers at Burnham Douglass. Our experienced and compassionate law team will help your through the divorce process, protecting your rights and working toward an amicable agreement. Contact us online or call us at 856-751-5505 for a free consultation. We are located in Marlton and Northfield, New Jersey, and we serve clients throughout South Jersey, including Camden County, Burlington County, Atlantic County, Gloucester County, and Mercer County.