Following the recent announcement by the Ministry of Health on new requirements for Integrated Shield Plan (IP) riders, click here for information on what this means for Great Eastern's medical plans.

Policy surrender

An insurance policy is meant to meet your long-term financial needs and we advise policyholders to keep the policy during its contract period to reap the full benefits of the policy.

It is possible to opt for an early surrender of a policy though, although there are several disadvantages in doing so, including:

  • You will lose the insurance protection offered by the policy
  • You may not be able to achieve your intended financial objective
  • You may lose the financial benefit accumulated over the years. You may not be able to obtain a similar level of protection on the same terms in the future as your health condition might have changed since you bought the original policy; your age would also have increased

If you choose to buy a new policy to replace the one you have surrendered, you will incur:

  • Distribution fee – This is the commission paid to Financial Representatives upon the purchase of new insurance policies and investment products.
  • Policy fee – This is usually incurred upon the purchase of each policy.

Alternative options to policy surrender

To meet your immediate or short-term financial needs, you can consider the following options for policies with cash value:

  • Apply for a cash loan to meet short-term financial needs
  • Convert a policy to a reduced or paid-up extended term insurance policy
  • Reduce the policy regular premiums (only applicable to policies with regular premiums)

There are three ways to surrender a policy:

1) Contact your Financial Representative

2) Walk in at our Customer Service Centre

3) Make an online submission

How to receive cash value from a surrendered policy

You can receive the cash value from a surrendered policy through PayNow or direct crediting.

If you have not registered for PayNow, you can do so at a participating bank.

Did you know?

You can seek advice from your Financial Representative about early surrender of a policy. Your Financial Representative can explain the implications of alternative options and provide you with appropriate recommendations. 

 

Follow these steps to surrender a policy through our customer service officer at our Customer Service Centre.

Ensure that you bring the following items when you visit our Customer Service Centre:

1) NRIC or passport

2) For direct crediting to local Singapore bank account, bring along one of the following:

  • Bank statement that is dated within the last 6 months, or
  • Valid bank book

For crediting to an overseas bank account, bring along one of the following:

  • Bank statement that is dated within the last 6 months, or
  • Valid bank book, or
  • E-statement that is dated within the last 6 months and showing full name and account number only (with transaction and other details blanked out) for verification.

The funds would be credited into the desired bank account.

 

Our address

The Great Eastern Life Assurance Company Limited
1 Pickering Street
Great Eastern Centre #01-01
Singapore 048659

Operating Hours (Mondays to Fridays)

Customer Service: 9:00am to 5:30pm
Closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays

 

Follow these steps to surrender a policy via email or post.

 

By email

1) Email us at wecare-sg@greateasternlife.com.

2) We will provide you with the Surrender Request Form.

3) Submit the completed form (along with supporting documents where necessary) via online submission

 

By post

1) Email us at wecare-sg@greateasternlife.com.

2) We will provide you with the Surrender Request Form.

3) Submit the completed form (along with supporting documents where necessary) by post to the following address:

Attention to: Customer Service Department
The Great Eastern Life Assurance Company Limited
1 Pickering Street
Great Eastern Centre #01-01
Singapore 048659

We may contact you on the telephone if any clarification is needed.

Otherwise, you will receive your cash value within 3 – 7 working days for payouts made to local bank accounts, and 2 weeks for payouts made to overseas bank accounts.