A Florida life insurer delays paying a lump-sum death benefit for several months after receiving the written death certificate. What interest must the proceeds earn?

Why D is correct

Under Fla. Stat. 627.4615, lump-sum death proceeds must accrue interest at not less than the Moody's Corporate Bond Yield Average (monthly average), measured from receipt of the written death certificate; if that index is substantially changed, a floor of 8% applies. The 12% rate belongs to late health claim payments, and a flat 8% applies only as the fallback floor if the index is substantially changed.

Why the other options are wrong

• A) A flat 8% is only the floor that applies if the Moody's index is substantially changed; the ordinary benchmark is the index itself.
• B) Twelve percent simple interest is the penalty rate for late health claim payments, not life proceeds.
• C) Interest accrues by statute from receipt of the written death certificate; no lawsuit is needed.

Memory hook

Life proceeds ride the Moody's average, not a flat rate.