If there is no named beneficiary, the pension amount will be payable to the estate of the pensioner.

• A. The estate
• B. The named beneficiary
• C. The spouse
• D. The insurer

Answer: (A)

When there isn’t a named beneficiary, the funds from a pension plan become part of the deceased’s estate. The plan has no designated person to receive the benefits directly, so the payment is made to the estate’s administrator or executor. From there, the assets are distributed according to the will or, if there isn’t one, according to the intestacy rules in the province. This is why the correct understanding is that the estate receives the pension amount in the absence of a beneficiary designation.

The other options don’t apply here because a named beneficiary would receive the funds if one were designated; without a designation, there’s no specific recipient. A surviving spouse or the insurer would only receive the funds if the plan or relevant law provides a default survivor benefit or if there is another mechanism directing the payout, which isn’t indicated in this scenario.