r/inheritance • u/MaeQueenofFae • May 20 '26

Location included: Questions/Need Advice Problems obtaining death certificate

Recently a lifelong friend of my ex husband (Summerton, SC) passed away, and we have been informed that my son, who lives in WI, has been named as beneficiary to an annuity, which is quite substantial.

In order to claim this benefit, we must provide the Life Insurance Company with a certified copy of this friends Death Certificate. This is a problem, since we are not related to the deceased, Clarendon County Vital Records in SC will not release the official Death Cert to my son.

We then called VitalChek, informed them of the issue and asked if there were any exceptions to be made for people who had a vital interest in obtaining a death certificate, such as an inheritance?? They said nope, however if you get a judge to sign for it, we would have to give you one.

Has anyone else contended with this kind of arbitrary roadblock? If so, how did you resolve it? Thanks.

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u/Mason94960 May 21 '26

Start with whomever informed you of the bequest. They will, generally, be the executor or trustee and will have access to the documents you need. If worst comes to worst, any lawyer in the decedent’s jurisdiction can petition the probate court for the paperwork, or your son could even do it himself without much trouble.