Are you a dead peasant to your employer?

[Real2DaC0re]

What is “Dead Peasant” Insurance?

Dead Peasant Insurance is sometimes used as a shorthand reference for life insurance policies that insure a company’s rank-and-file employees and name the company as the beneficiary. This means that the company receives the life insurance benefits when the covered employees die. This insurance may also be called “janitor insurance,”…


How did it get the name “Dead Peasant” insurance?

Winn Dixie Stores bought life insurance policies on approximately 36,000 of its employees, without their knowledge or consent, and named itself as the policies’ beneficiary. The insurance brokerage firm that placed the policies prepared two memos describing the deceased employees as “Dead Peasants.” These memos were part of the court’s record in a lawsuit in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that Winn-Dixie’s policies were a sham transaction for federal income tax purposes. The memos were later used by reporters such as Ellen Schultz and Theo Francis of the Wall Street Journal and L.M. Sixel of the Houston Chronicle and incorporated into articles about this type of insurance.


Which employers bought policies on the lives of employees?

Because a company’s purchase of insurance policies is not a public record, it is virtually impossible to know every company that invested in policies on employees’ lives. The following companies, however, are believed to have been named as the beneficiary of life insurance policies on employees:

* ADAC Laboratories
* Advanced Telecommunication Corp.
* Aeroquip Vickers Inc.
* Alabama Power Co.
* Alfa Corp.
* Allegheny Technologies Inc.
* Allergan Inc.
* Allfirst Financial Inc.
* American Business Products, Inc.
* American Electric Power
* American Express Co.
* American Greetings Corp.
* American Management Systems Inc.
* American Seafoods Group LLC
* Ameritech Corp.
* Amerus Group Co.
* Anadarko Petroleum Corporation
* Appalachian Power Co.
* Arch Chemical
* Aristech Chemical Corp.
* AT&T Communications
* Atlantic Richfield Co.
* Avery Dennison Corp
* Avon Products Inc.
* B. F. Goodrich Company
* Ball Corporation
* Bank Boston
* Bank Of America
* Bank One Corp.
* Barnett Banks Inc.
* Bassett Furniture Industries Inc.
* Be Aerospace Inc.
* Bear Stearns Companies
* Bellsouth Corporation
* Boise Cascade Corp.
* Boston Company
* Boston Federal
* Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
* Camelot Music, Inc.
* Carolina Power & Light Co.
* Carpenter Technology Corp.
* Catskill Financial Corp.
* Central Power & Light Co.
* Ch2m Hill Companies Ltd.
* Charming Shoppes, Inc.
* Checkfree Corp.
* Chemical Banking Corporation
* Citibank, N.A.
* Citizens Bank
* Clark Inc.
* Clorox Company
* CNF Inc.
* Coca-Cola Company
* Columbus Southern Power Co.
* Commercial Intertech Corp.
* Compass Bank (Florida & Alabama)
* Computer Technology Associates Inc.
* Consolidated Natural Gas Co.
* Consolidated Rail Corporation
* Cox Enterprises, Inc.
* CTA Inc.
* Cymer Inc.
* Diamond Shamrock Inc.
* Diebold Inc.
* Dime Bancorp Inc.
* Dow Chemical
* Earle M. Jorgensen Co.
* Eastman Kodak Company
* Eaton Corp.
* ECC Capital Corp.
* Enserch Corp.
* F&M Bancorp
* FiberMark Inc.
* Figgie International Inc.
* Fina Oil & Chemical Company
* First Bank System Inc.
* First Commonwealth
* First Midwest Bancorp Inc.
* Fleet Bank
* FleetBoston Financial Corp.
* Flightsafety International Inc.
* Frontier Bank
* Fulton Financial Corp.
* GATX Corporation
* Georgia Power Co.
* GNC Corp.
* Great Plains Energy Inc.
* GTE Corporation
* Gulf Power Co.
* HCR Manor Care Inc
* Hechinger Company
* Heritage Commerce Corp.
* Herman Miller Inc.
* Hershey Foods Corporation
* Hillenbrand Industries, Inc.
* Hosiery Corporation of America
* Houghton Mifflin
* Household Finance
* Hovnanian Enterprises Inc.
* Hughes Supply Inc
* ICI Americas, Inc.
* Idaho Power Company
* IKON Office Solutions Inc.
* Indiana Michigan Power Co.
* Integra Bank Corp.
* Intermark Inc.
* Iowa First Bancshares Corp.
* Iroquois Bancorp Inc.
* J Jill Group Inc.
* JP Morgan Chase & Co.
* Kansas City Power & Light
* Kansas Gas & Electric Co.
* Keithley Instruments Inc.
* Kentucky Power Co.
* Keycorp Ohio
* Kimberly Clark
* Korn Ferry International
* Laser Master Int’l. Inc.
* Linens N Things Inc.
* LKQ Corp.
* Louisiana Pacific Corp.
* Manor Care Inc.
* Marriott International Inc.
* McDonnell Douglas Corp.
* Media General Inc.
* Medicalcontrol Inc.
* Menasha Corporation
* MidAmerican Energy Co.
* Miix Group Inc.
* Mississippi Power Co.
* MNC Financial Inc.
* Mueller Industries Inc.
* National City Corporation
* NationsBank
* Nestle Enterprises
* Norfolk Southern Corp.
* Norfolk Southern Railway Co.
* Northern States Power Co.
* Ohio Power Co.
* Old National
* Olin Corporation
* Owens & Minor Inc.
* PacifiCorp
* Panera Bread Co.
* Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Company
* Parker Hannifin Corp.
* Penn Treaty American Corp.
* Penns Woods Bancorp Inc.
* Phibro Animal Health Corp.
* Philipp Brothers Chemicals Inc.
* Phoenix Companies Inc.
* Pinnacle Financial Services Inc.
* Portland General Electric
* Potlatch Corporation
* PPG Industries
* Procter & Gamble Company
* PSS World Medical Inc.
* Public Service Co. of New Mexico
* Public Service Co. of Oklahoma
* Public Service Enterprise Group
* Questech Inc.
* R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company
* Ruddick Corp.
* Ryder System Inc.
* Sallie Mae (Stud Ln Mktg Assoc.)
* Savannah Electric & Power Co.
* Sequa Corp.
* Service Merchandise Co., Inc.
* Shearson Mortgage
* Sherwin-Williams
* Sky Chefs
* Smart & Final Inc.
* Smith Barney
* Sonoco Products Co.
* Southwest Bank
* Southwest Water Co.
* Southwestern Bell Corp.
* Southwestern Electric Power Co.
* Southwestern Public Service Co.
* Star Banc Corp.
* Stauffer Management Company
* Steelcase Inc.
* Sturgis Bancorp Inc.
* Summit Bank of N.J.
* Swank, Inc.
* Tellabs Inc.
* Tenet Healthcare Corp.
* Texas Eastern Transmission Corp.
* Tompkins Trustco Inc.
* TXU Corp.
* TYCO International
* UniFirst Corp.
* Union Bank
* United National Bancorp
* Urocor Inc.
* Vineyard National Bancorp
* W. R. Grace & Company
* Wachovia Corporation
* Walgreen Company
* Wal-Mart Stores
* Walt Disney
* Wang’s International, Inc.
* Wells Fargo, N.A.
* West Coast Bancorp
* West Texas Utilities Co.
* Westar Energy Inc.
* Western Aire Chef Inc
* Western Resources, Inc.
* Westpoint Pepperell
* Winn Dixie
* Winnebago Industries Inc.
* Woolworth Corporation
* Xcel Energy Inc.
* York Water Co.
* Zale Corp.

http://deadpeasantinsurance.com/

 

[doghouse]

Man that's deep. Shows how big business views it's own people; like property. Now if they view their own this way than what do they think about us? I tell you the devil wears a suit.


Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this pratice is now illegal.

 

[Heist]

If companies have to pay unemployment insurance, disability benefits, and give liberal medical / materinty leave, why can't they recoup some of that should you die while under their employment?

If any of you have ever owned or ran a company, you'd see the logic. It's not about being sheisty, it's about protecting your company.

Shit, every decision making senior executive under contract with the company as well as high value employees (star engineers - marketing and sales staff - etc) have a "Key Man" insurance policy placed on them - why not the rank and file as well so long as the Board deems it financially prudent.

 

[redemption]

I would have any kind of problem with it if the following occurred:

- They obtained consent with the employee

- For providing consent, the employee's beneficiary gets a cut (considering the employer will pay the cost of the policy, the employer would get a larger share of course)

If those two requirements are met, I would see this as a smart thing on the part of those businesses (rather than sneaky).

 

[Real2DaC0re]

If companies have to pay unemployment insurance, disability benefits, and give liberal medical / materinty leave, why can't they recoup some of that should you die while under their employment?

If any of you have ever owned or ran a company, you'd see the logic. It's not about being sheisty, it's about protecting your company.

Shit, every decision making senior executive under contract with the company as well as high value employees (star engineers - marketing and sales staff - etc) have a "Key Man" insurance policy placed on them - why not the rank and file as well so long as the Board deems it financially prudent.

i understand wha u saying but how good is this process if the company doesnt give any money to the surviving family? it was a woman who worked at walmart for 18months in the bakery. she went into a coma and died, walmart made 81,000 off her and the family was left wit a $100,000 hospital bill and a $10,000 funeral. walmart didnt give that family a dime.

 

[Tinman]

This is not what's referred to as "key man" insurance. Whereas an employee that is not easily replaceable in the event of there death or disability and would have a detrimental effect on the corporation.


Dead peasant insurance is an investment tool used by the bean counters in a company. A bag boy at Food Lion is hardly irreplaceable.

 

[Soul On Ice]

i understand wha u saying but how good is this process if the company doesnt give any money to the surviving family? it was a woman who worked at walmart for 18months in the bakery. she went into a coma and died, walmart made 81,000 off her and the family was left wit a $100,000 hospital bill and a $10,000 funeral. walmart didnt give that family a dime.

thank you

 

[Man_Of_STeeL]

if they're gonna do it..i think they should have to make the employee aware they're doin' it...

 

[ljinsane]

If companies have to pay unemployment insurance, disability benefits, and give liberal medical / materinty leave, why can't they recoup some of that should you die while under their employment?

If any of you have ever owned or ran a company, you'd see the logic. It's not about being sheisty, it's about protecting your company.

Shit, every decision making senior executive under contract with the company as well as high value employees (star engineers - marketing and sales staff - etc) have a "Key Man" insurance policy placed on them - why not the rank and file as well so long as the Board deems it financially prudent.