Eligibility to claim a designated death benefit or lump-sum survivor payment depends on the governing legal framework of the specific insurance policy, government program, or employer-sponsored plan in question. In statutory contexts, such as certain government or social security survivor benefits, surviving spouses, dependent children, or legal guardians are typically designated as primary claimants. For private life insurance policies or workplace death-in-service schemes, the payout goes directly to the named beneficiaries listed on the policyholder's valid expression of wish form or to the legal executors of the deceased's estate if no formal beneficiary nomination was executed.