The limitation period is the time after which a legal action is no longer admissible. This means that if you take legal action after the limitation period has expired, the court will not consider it to determine whether or not it is founded.

The performance of the life insurance contract may give rise to disputes between the insurance company and the following persons:

• Subscriber (e.g. dispute related to refusal to change insured or beneficiary)
• Insured (e.g. dispute related to refusal to change beneficiary)
• Beneficiary (e.g. dispute over the insurer's refusal to pay the savings following the insured's death)
• Insurer (e.g. dispute over non-payment of contributions)
• Third parties (e.g. dispute over beneficiary status to person named in contract).

Legal actions relating to a life insurance contract must be brought within a period of 2 years from the event that is the basis of the request.

For example, when the beneficiary asks the insurer to pay the premium, the event that is the basis of the request is the death of the insured. In this case, the two-year period shall begin from the date of death of the insured person.

But if you are the beneficiary and you were not aware of the death of the insured at the time it occurred, the limitation period will begin to run on the day you became aware of the death.

There is a limit to this postponement of the starting point of the limitation period: your action will not be admissible if it is brought more than 30 years after the death of the insured, even if you did not know about it earlier.

The starting point of the limitation period shall also be delayed for the insurer where the insurer is not aware of the risk because of the insured's reluctance, omission or false statement.

In such cases, the starting point shall be the day on which the insurer became aware of the risk.

The limitation period shall be longer when you are the beneficiary of a life insurance contract that has been taken out by another person. In that case, the limitation period shall be 10 years from the date of death of the insured.

The limitation period for the action relating to life insurance contracts shall be interrupted by the following events:

• Recognition of debt or right
• Legal action
• Act of enforcement
• Appointment of experts following a disaster
• Sending a registered letter or an electronic registered letter, with acknowledgement of receipt by the insurer to the insured in respect of the action for payment of the premium
• Sending a registered letter or an electronic registered letter, with acknowledgement of receipt by the insured to the insurer with regard to the payment of the indemnity.