Beneficiaries✓ Verified · outline & fact-checked · Sep 2026Difficulty 1/5
A policyowner names three beneficiaries and specifies '40% to Maria, 35% to James, and 25% to a charity.' This arrangement is:
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why A is correct
A policyowner may name multiple beneficiaries and allocate the death benefit among them in any percentages that total 100 percent. There is no requirement that shares be equal, nor that beneficiaries be related to the insured or to each other. Percentage allocations give the owner control to reflect relationships, needs, and charitable intentions. If one beneficiary predeceases the insured, that beneficiary's share typically passes to the remaining beneficiaries proportionally or to a contingent beneficiary, depending on the policy language and any per capita or per stirpes election.
Why the other options are wrong
- B) Unequal allocation is expressly permitted. Equal shares are not required when the owner specifies a percentage allocation.
- C) The percentages must total 100 percent, but the beneficiaries need not be family members. Any individual or entity may be named.
- D) Charities may be named without special foundation status. Any entity capable of receiving property may be designated as a beneficiary.
Memory hook
Split the death benefit your way; a 40-35-25 split is perfectly legal.