Eligibility for EDLI Claim: Can My Late Husband's Benefits Be Denied Due to Company Lockout?

Eligibility for EDLI Claim

Please let me know what went wrong in this issue and your views on it. I am from Kerala. My husband was an employee in a company there until 2016. During his service time in 2016, the company's employees called for a lockout, and the company shut down. In 2020, he died due to a cardiac arrest. I applied for the eligible benefits to the concerned EPFO and ESI office through my husband's company. I recently found out that the EPFO and ESI office officials rejected my husband's EDLI claim, stating that he died while not in service. However, my husband did not resign from the company, nor was he a part of the lockout until his death. Am I eligible for EDLI? Please share your suggestions.

If the company shut down in 2016, then his employment came to an end at that time. The PF and ESIC officers are correct in their decision as the company would not have paid any contributions since 2016.

You may go to the local office of the ESIC and PF and check with them whether there is any provision under which you are eligible for relief. With the limited information you have shared, we cannot give you any more concrete suggestions.

Dear Madam, I have learned that your husband passed away suddenly due to a cardiac arrest during the factory shutdown. Please visit the PF office/ESI office near you to confirm whether the factory has informed the concerned office (PF/ESI) temporarily or permanently. If the office is temporarily closed, your husband was in service at the time of his passing; if it is permanently closed, he is not eligible.

Understanding EDLI (Employee Deposit Linked Insurance)

EDLI stands for Employee Deposit Linked Insurance. It works similarly to other types of insurance. This means that as long as the employee continues to pay the contributions or premiums, they will remain eligible for the benefits under the same policy. However, if the contributions or premiums are stopped, the individual will no longer be eligible for the benefits. When it is mentioned that the contributions or premiums are stopped, it implies that no further credits will be made to their accounts.