Which of the following triggers an accelerated (living) benefit?

An accelerated (living) benefit is a feature in life insurance policies that allows policyholders to access a portion of their death benefit while they are still alive, under certain conditions. The correct choice refers to a qualifying event, which can include serious illness, terminal illness, or significant medical conditions that impact the policyholder's life expectancy or quality of life.

This benefit is designed to provide policyholders with financial support during times of severe health challenges, enabling them to cover medical expenses, enjoy quality of life experiences, or manage other financial pressures.

In contrast, options such as policy lapses, the death of the policyholder, and a change of beneficiary do not typically trigger accelerated benefits. A policy lapse means the insurance is no longer in force and therefore cannot provide benefits, the death of the policyholder results in the payment of the full death benefit to the beneficiaries rather than an accelerated benefit, and changing the beneficiary simply alters who will receive the benefit upon death without providing access to any living benefits. Thus, a qualifying event is the appropriate trigger for accessing these unique living benefits in life insurance.