When must the insurable interest exist for life insurance?

Insurable interest does not need to exist at the time of death because the policyholder's interest is assessed earlier in the process. If the policyholder only establishes an interest after the policy has been issued, it undermines the principle of insurable interest, which aims to prevent gambling on life.

Policy maturity refers to the point at which the policy's benefits are paid out, typically at the end of a term for certain types of policies. Insurable interest must be established before this maturity, as it is the application stage where the ethical basis for the insurance contract is evaluated, not at the time the benefits are disbursed.

While it might seem that insurable interest should be present at the policy date, it is actually required at the time of application to ensure that the insurer can assess the risk appropriately before coverage begins. The policy date signifies when coverage starts, but the interest must already be demonstrated upon application submission.