What happens to My GM Rewards points when the owner dies
General Motors points are forfeited under the program's terms when the account is closed
GM Rewards Member Support Center
GM Rewards Member Support Center (death of a member; GM publishes no separate estates desk)
GM publishes no estate-claim timeline, because the Terms forfeit the points at death rather than process them for transfer: Section 2(E)(ii) closes the Member Account upon the death of the member, and Section 3(J) expires all accumulated points at that point. Separately, unredeemed points expire seven (7) years from the member's last earn or redemption activity (transfer activity does not count as activity for this purpose), and Section 2(E)(iii) lets GM close an account that has gone longer than seven years without an earn or a redemption. The practical window is short and undefined — it runs until GM closes the account — so a survivor who wants the points considered should call the Member Support Center, published as open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, and put the written request in before closure rather than after.
When a My GM Rewards account holder dies, points are forfeited under General Motors's terms. The account balance has no transferable value, and there is no formal process for heirs to claim points.
Families have occasionally received goodwill accommodations from General Motors, but these are not part of the published terms and cannot be relied upon.
What to do
If a My GM Rewards account holder has passed away, here is what to do:
- •An eligible new Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, or Cadillac vehicle purchase or lease at a participating dealer
- •A CarBravo certified used vehicle purchase at a participating GM dealership
- •Paid GM Certified Service, GM Genuine Parts and ACDelco Parts, eligible accessories, and GM Protection Plans
- •Most OnStar plans, General Motors Insurance, and the GM Company Store
- •GM Financial and Cadillac Financial account balances, applied at gmfinancial.com or cadillacfinancial.com
- •A transfer of points to another member (the transferring account must have been enrolled more than 30 days; a member must call to initiate or receive transfers totaling more than 300,000 points in a calendar year)
Required Documents
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Documentation of your authority to act for the estate, such as Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
- The deceased member's GM Rewards member number (or the GM Account email), and the point balance if known
- The GM Rewards member number of the survivor named to receive any discretionary point transfer
Timeline
GM publishes no estate-claim timeline, because the Terms forfeit the points at death rather than process them for transfer: Section 2(E)(ii) closes the Member Account upon the death of the member, and Section 3(J) expires all accumulated points at that point. Separately, unredeemed points expire seven (7) years from the member's last earn or redemption activity (transfer activity does not count as activity for this purpose), and Section 2(E)(iii) lets GM close an account that has gone longer than seven years without an earn or a redemption. The practical window is short and undefined — it runs until GM closes the account — so a survivor who wants the points considered should call the Member Support Center, published as open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, and put the written request in before closure rather than after.
Frequently asked questions
They are forfeited. GM's Program Terms state that GM will close a Member Account upon the death of the Member, and that all accumulated points automatically expire upon the death of the Member. Once the account is closed the points are forfeited and cannot be reinstated, and GM is under no obligation to compensate or pay cash for them.
A survivor can ask, but GM publishes no deceased-member transfer process and the Terms give it every right to decline. The reason the ask is worth making is that GM already runs a member-to-member point transfer mechanism for living members, so the request is that GM apply that same mechanism, or reinstate the points, as a one-time courtesy. Start with the GM Rewards Member Support Center at 1-844-764-2665 and follow up in writing with the death certificate, proof of authority to act for the estate, the member number, and the survivor's GM Rewards member number.
No. GM's Terms state that points have no cash or other monetary value, are not legal tender, are not the member's property, and have no property value. They cannot be redeemed for cash, credit, or any currency, and GM will not pay cash for forfeited or unused points.
GM publishes no dedicated bereavement channel, deceased-member form, estates portal, or estates mailing address for My GM Rewards. The Program Terms simply close the account at death and forfeit the points. The practical route is the GM Rewards Member Support Center at 1-844-764-2665, which is also where a written courtesy request should be routed.
As quickly as possible, and ideally before GM closes the Member Account. The Terms close the account upon the death of the member and expire the points at that point, and GM publishes no window for reversing a closure. If the account is still open and you have lawful authority as the personal representative, the points can still be redeemed or transferred through the program's own channels.
Under the official terms, points have no value after the account holder dies. The only way to preserve the value of My GM Rewards points is to redeem, transfer, or share them while the account is active.
Sources
Data sourced from General Motors primary sources (8 pages reviewed). How we research.
GM Rewards Member Support Center
GM Rewards Member Support Center (death of a member; GM publishes no separate estates desk)
GM publishes no estate-claim timeline, because the Terms forfeit the points at death rather than process them for transfer: Section 2(E)(ii) closes the Member Account upon the death of the member, and Section 3(J) expires all accumulated points at that point. Separately, unredeemed points expire seven (7) years from the member's last earn or redemption activity (transfer activity does not count as activity for this purpose), and Section 2(E)(iii) lets GM close an account that has gone longer than seven years without an earn or a redemption. The practical window is short and undefined — it runs until GM closes the account — so a survivor who wants the points considered should call the Member Support Center, published as open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, and put the written request in before closure rather than after.
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