What to do when a Allianz Life account holder dies
Contact Allianz Life — 5-step process, 6 required documents, and claims evaluated within 10 business days of receiving all required documents, or within applicable state requirements. tax-qualified annuities: first payment by december 31 following the year of death. non-tax-qualified annuities: first payment within one year of death.
Customer Service
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
Customer Service
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
Claims Department
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
Filing a death claim on a Allianz Life policy begins with notifying the Claims Department at 1-800-950-1962. Life insurance claims are separate from probate—proceeds transfer directly to named beneficiaries regardless of whether the estate goes through court. The timeline and documentation requirements depend on the policy type and cause of death.
Death claims at Allianz Life can be started through an online portal, which streamlines the initial notification and document upload. Phone and mail options are also available.
Death claim process
To file a claim after an account holder's death, here is what Allianz Life requires:
Filing a claim
- Deceased's name, contract/policy numbers, date of death, and beneficiary information
- All listed beneficiaries will be contacted and mailed a claim form packet
- A surviving spouse who is the sole beneficiary (or the surviving joint owner, who is automatically the sole primary beneficiary) may be able to elect spousal continuation and keep the contract in force rather than take the death benefit
- Spousal continuation is NOT available when a trust owns the annuity or when a trust is the beneficiary; a trust beneficiary generally takes a lump sum or full distribution within five years of the annuitant's death (AMK-118-N)
- On a fixed index annuity the death benefit is the greater of the accumulation value, guaranteed minimum value, cash value, or cumulative withdrawal amount -- confirm which figure the packet is quoting
- The Allianz Claims department evaluates the claim within 10 business days of receiving all required documents, or per applicable state requirements
- If additional information is needed, Allianz will contact the beneficiary directly
- Payment is sent based on the selected payout option; a confirmation letter is mailed separately
Required Documents
- Completed claim form (provided in the claim packet mailed by Allianz)
- One certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued photo identification for each beneficiary
- Trust documents (if trust is named as beneficiary)
- Letters of administration or court appointment (if estate is beneficiary)
- Additional documentation for minor, foreign, or qualified retirement plan beneficiaries
Claims Contact
What to know at this institution
There is no self-service claims portal at Allianz Life: the only online step is the "Report a Death" notification form at allianzlife.com/start-a-claim, which asks for the deceased's name, date of birth, date of death, last four digits of the SSN, and up to 20 policy or contract numbers. Allianz then locates the contracts, verifies the beneficiaries on file, and mails a claim form packet directly to each listed beneficiary -- the claim forms are not published for download, so a survivor cannot pre-fill them. Contract numbers tell you which desk to use: a contract number that begins with letters (alpha) is a variable annuity; life insurance policies and fixed annuity contracts have no letters. Death claims phone: 800-950-1962 (fixed annuities and life insurance) or 800-624-0197 (variable annuities), Mon-Thu 7 AM - 6 PM CT, Fri 7 AM - 5 PM CT. Fax: 763-582-6002 (fixed/life) or 763-765-7912 (variable). Mailing: PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060 (fixed/life; also the address for Allianz Life Insurance Company of New York contracts) or PO Box 561, Minneapolis, MN 55440-0561 (variable). Annuity payout timing is contract-driven: for a tax-qualified annuity the first payment is due by December 31 of the year following the year of death; for a non-tax-qualified annuity, within one year of death. If a claim is not filed within the applicable number of years, the proceeds are treated as unclaimed property and remitted to the state.
Prepare your letter of instruction to Allianz Life
Allianz Life asks for a letter of instruction alongside its claim form. We prepare a transmittal cover letter and the enclosure checklist Allianz Life requires.
Build your letter of instructionHow long the process takes at Allianz Life: Claims evaluated within 10 business days of receiving all required documents, or within applicable state requirements. Tax-qualified annuities: first payment by December 31 following the year of death. Non-tax-qualified annuities: first payment within one year of death. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
Documentation required by Allianz Life includes Completed claim form (provided in the claim packet mailed by Allianz), One certified copy of the death certificate, and Government-issued photo identification for each beneficiary, along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
Often, yes. A surviving spouse who is the sole beneficiary -- or a surviving joint owner, who under most Allianz contracts is automatically the sole primary beneficiary -- may elect spousal continuation and keep the contract in force, preserving benefits such as the Lifetime Income Value rather than cashing out the death benefit. Spousal continuation is not available if a trust owns the annuity or a trust is the beneficiary, because the owner or payee is not an individual. The election is made through the claim packet Allianz mails after you report the death at allianzlife.com/start-a-claim or call 800-950-1962 (fixed annuities and life insurance) or 800-624-0197 (variable annuities).
No, the claim form is not downloadable. The only entry point is the "Report a Death" form at allianzlife.com/start-a-claim (or a call to 800-950-1962 for fixed annuities and life insurance, 800-624-0197 for variable annuities, Monday-Thursday 7 a.m.-6 p.m. CT and Friday 7 a.m.-5 p.m. CT). You supply the deceased's name, date of birth, date of death, last four digits of the Social Security number, and up to 20 policy or contract numbers. Allianz locates the contracts, verifies the beneficiaries on file, and mails a claim form packet to each listed beneficiary. Return it with one certified copy of the death certificate to PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060 (fixed annuities and life insurance) or PO Box 561, Minneapolis, MN 55440-0561 (variable annuities). Claims are evaluated within 10 business days of receiving all required documents, or per state requirements. A contract number that starts with letters is a variable annuity; life policies and fixed annuity contracts have no letters.
A non-qualified annuity contract can be transferred to trust ownership on the Transfer of Ownership Request (SFAL0013), together with an Entity Customer Information form, a Certification of Trust or the trust pages showing the trust name and acting trustees, and a Non-Individual Ownership form. Tax deferral is the catch: under IRC Section 72(u)(1) a trust-owned annuity keeps income tax deferral only if the trust is an "agent for a natural person," which the Allianz Advanced Markets Q&A (AMK-118-N) describes as generally requiring all trust beneficiaries to be natural persons, and for an irrevocable trust Allianz requires the trust's legal or tax advisor or professional trustee to certify that. A charitable remainder trust does not qualify. Transferring a non-qualified contract may itself be a taxable event, and Allianz will send an "Awareness of Taxation" letter that must be signed and returned first. Two other effects: a trust-owned contract has no spousal continuation, and its death benefit is paid at the ANNUITANT's death rather than the owner's, so the choice of annuitant matters. Qualified (IRA/403(b)) contracts cannot be transferred to a trust.
Naming the trust as beneficiary on the Beneficiary Designation Request (SFAL0012) avoids the immediate tax consequences of an ownership transfer -- you enter the trust in the non-individual beneficiary field with the trust date and EIN, and no ownership change is filed. But it has a payout cost: per the Allianz Advanced Markets Q&A (AMK-118-N), when a revocable trust is the beneficiary there is no spousal continuation and no life-expectancy distribution option, so the proceeds must be distributed to the trust -- and income taxes paid -- either in a lump sum or within five years of the annuitant's death. Allocation percentages must total 100%, and on an annuity contract the owner or joint owner cannot be listed as a beneficiary.
Yes. Ownership assignment to an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust is not an online transaction -- online self-service at allianzlife.com covers beneficiary changes, not ownership changes. Use the Transfer of Ownership Request (SFAL0013) with an Entity Customer Information form and a Certification of Trust (or trust pages showing the trust name and acting trustees), signed by both the existing owner and the trustee as new owner. Submit it by email to lifeinsurance@send.allianzlife.com, by web upload after logging in, by fax to 763-582-6002, or by mail to PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060 (overnight: 5701 Golden Hills Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55416-1297). The three-year lookback under IRC Section 2035 applies: if the insured dies within three years of transferring an existing policy, the death benefit is pulled back into the taxable estate. Having the trustee apply as owner from inception avoids that.
Allianz Life's Claims Department can be reached by phone at 1-800-950-1962 and fax at 1-763-582-6002 for questions throughout the claims process.
If the deceased held multiple Allianz Life policies, each may require a separate claim or have different documentation requirements. The Claims Department can confirm which accounts require individual attention and which can be processed together.
Sources
Data sourced from Allianz Life primary sources (18 pages reviewed). How we research.
Customer Service
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
Customer Service
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
Claims Department
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, PO Box 59060, Minneapolis, MN 55459-0060
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