Daddy Blackbird’s Story

Daddy Blackbird’s Story

Share this post

Daddy Blackbird’s Story
Daddy Blackbird’s Story
Paperwork, promises and pointless policies

Paperwork, promises and pointless policies

Daddy Blackbird #11

DaddyBlackbird's avatar
DaddyBlackbird
Jun 28, 2025
∙ Paid
7

Share this post

Daddy Blackbird’s Story
Daddy Blackbird’s Story
Paperwork, promises and pointless policies
1
Share

In the whirlwind of grief and shock after a sudden death by suicide, practical matters start to creep in, adding insult to injury.

Among all the paperwork and notifications and that ghastly death certificate, one challenging issue came to light: life insurance.

After Steve died, I was trying to manage the mountains of paperwork, admin, notifications, and decisions.

I was dealing with Steve’s workplace, banks, government agencies, utility providers, and so many other places.

It was overwhelming. The scale of what had to be done was unbearable, yet entirely unavoidable.

Steve and I had always considered ourselves responsible parents. Like many couples with young children, we’d taken out life insurance policies on each other, a safety net in case the worst should happen. It was a painful but practical decision, made out of love for our daughters. We knew we had to protect them.

But when I checked the small print, my heart sank. The policy we’d taken out together had only been in place for eight months.

It turned out there was a 12-month exclusion clause, the kind of detail you don’t pay much attention to when you’re healthy and full of hope, and there was an excruciating period while I waited for their final decision after appealing…

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Daddy Blackbird’s Story to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Daddy Blackbird
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share