Estate planning at Great American Life
How to protect 13 Great American Life accounts — manage beneficiaries by phone, fund a trust by mail, and file death claims
Brand change
Great American Life Insurance Company was acquired by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company in May 2021 and changed its name to MassMutual Ascend Life Insurance Company effective on or about October 3, 2022. It is the same legal entity under a new name and remains a wholly owned MassMutual subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio. Existing Great American Life contract numbers, policy terms, and benefits are unchanged. Use MassMutual Ascend for all servicing: annuity contracts 800-854-3649, life insurance policies 888-863-5891, death claims 800-854-3649 (fax 513-412-5122, ClaimDocs@mmascend.com), P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420. Note the separate MassMutual (Springfield, MA) record covers policies written by the parent company, not by Great American Life / MassMutual Ascend. Effective October 2022.
Great American Life is now part of MassMutual. The procedures below reflect Great American Life's accounts during the transition. View the MassMutual estate planning page.
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
Phone1-800-854-3649
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service
Registered Index-Linked and Variable Annuities
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
Phone1-800-854-3649
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service
Registered Index-Linked and Variable Annuities
WebsiteLearn more→
Claims Department
Phone1-800-854-3649
Fax513-412-5122
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, Attn: Claims Department, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service / Claims
Overnight Mail
WebsiteNotify online→
Verified Jul 2026
With 13 products relevant to estate planning, Great American Life policyholders need to understand how beneficiary designations control where proceeds go. These designations override a will, so the names on file with Great American Life are what determine who receives the death benefit.
Great American Life lets account holders update beneficiary designations by mail and by phone, typically taking 15-30 minutes to complete; allow 2-4 weeks for processing. Trust funding is also available, allowing families to name a trust as the policy beneficiary or establish an irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT).
There are two sides to estate planning at Great American Life: setting things up while you're alive, and the process survivors follow after a death.
Preparing your estate
Beneficiaries and trust funding
How to update beneficiaries by phone, fund a trust by mail, and review 13 account types at Great American Life.
View details →When someone dies
Death claim process
7-step process, 10 required documents, and contact information for survivors.
View details →Frequently asked questions
No. MassMutual Ascend explicitly instructs owners not to send the trust document. Its trust-requirements guide says that if it receives the trust, it cannot rely on a Trust Certification that is inconsistent with the trust's terms, the file must go to its Legal Department for review, and processing is delayed. Instead, complete the Trust Certification and Agreement (Form X6017907NW), which certifies the trust date, governing state, grantors, trustees, and co-trustee signing authority under penalty of perjury. To move a non-qualified annuity into a trust you file the Contract/Certificate Ownership/Annuitant Change Form (Form X6002701NW) with X6017907NW, the trust EIN (unless the trust is revocable or a grantor-type trust), a photocopy of the trustee's photo ID, and Section 4 completed to name the same trust as beneficiary. MassMutual Ascend requires the trust to be both the sole owner and the sole primary beneficiary. Transferring a non-qualified annuity can be a taxable event, so many owners name the trust as beneficiary instead of owner.
Sources
- mybusiness.massmutualascend.com
- massmutualascend.com
- myannuity.massmutualascend.com
- securecontact.massmutualascend.com
Data sourced from Great American Life primary sources (19 pages reviewed). How we research.
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
Phone1-800-854-3649
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service
Registered Index-Linked and Variable Annuities
WebsiteLearn more→
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
Phone1-800-854-3649
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service
Registered Index-Linked and Variable Annuities
WebsiteLearn more→
Claims Department
Phone1-800-854-3649
Fax513-412-5122
Mailing Address
MassMutual Ascend, Attn: Claims Department, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Life Insurance Customer Service / Claims
Overnight Mail
WebsiteNotify online→
Verified Jul 2026
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your Great American Life accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
