Who has the right to change the beneficiary on a life insurance policy?

The policyowner — the person who owns the contract — has the right to change beneficiaries during the insured's lifetime, with one major exception: if the original beneficiary was designated as 'irrevocable', the owner cannot change them without the irrevocable beneficiary's consent. 'Revocable' designations (the default) allow the owner to change beneficiaries at will. Irrevocable designations are sometimes used in divorce settlements or business agreements where the beneficiary needs a guarantee they will remain on the policy. The owner usually has other rights too: to take loans against cash value, to surrender the policy, to assign the policy. The insured (the person whose life is insured) and the owner can be the same person or different; the insured does not control the policy unless they are also the owner.