How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Great American Life
Covers 13 insurance accounts — beneficiaries can be updated by phone
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)
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Claims Department
MassMutual Ascend, Attn: Claims Department, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
For Great American Life policyholders, estate planning comes down to one critical step: making sure the right beneficiaries are named on every policy. Insurance proceeds bypass probate entirely and go directly to whoever is listed—regardless of what a will says. When estate tax planning or controlled distributions are a factor, a trust can be named as beneficiary instead.
With 13 product types, Great American Life offers a range of transfer options. Some policies support beneficiary designations, others can be retitled into a trust, and some require probate if no beneficiary is designated. The sections below break down each step.
- Deferred annuity: Beneficiary Designation and Restricted Death Benefit Election, Form X1053406NW
- Annuity already in payout (annuitized) status: Beneficiary Change (Annuitized Contracts Only), Form ASM2134
- Life insurance policy: Policy Change Request Form Life Policy (massmutualascend.com/life-insurance-forms)
- Phone representatives cannot change a designation over the phone; a signed form is required
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- A trust may be named as a primary or contingent beneficiary; give the trust name, trustee name(s), and trust agreement date
- If the owner of the contract is a trust, MassMutual Ascend may reject the designation of any beneficiary other than the trust itself
- MassMutual Ascend is not obligated to inquire into the terms of a trust named as beneficiary and is discharged from liability once it pays the death benefit to the trustee
- The form revokes all prior beneficiary designations and any prior elections of optional methods of settlement
- If a beneficiary's SSN, address, date of birth, and phone number are not supplied, the death benefit may end up escheated to the state
- Original signatures are required on claim and change forms; digital signatures are not accepted
- Annuitized (in-payout) contracts use Form ASM2134 instead of X1053406NW. Form X1053406NW also warns that once you annuitize a contract, your beneficiary designations no longer apply.
- A Restricted Death Benefit Election cannot be used on a SPOUSE beneficiary (Form X1053406NW, Terms and Conditions item 2) -- the spouse's post-death options are successor-owner continuation or a rollover into a contract in their own name
- A Restricted Payout Election carries a spendthrift effect: Form X1053406NW item 7 states that, to the extent allowed by law, the beneficiary may not transfer, sell, assign, pledge, encumber, or alienate the payments, and the payments are not subject to the claims of creditors or to legal process. This is the reason to restrict a beneficiary who has creditor exposure.
- On a QUALIFIED contract the restricted payout is capped: the fixed period cannot extend more than 10 years past the owner's death, and a life payout is available only to an "eligible designated beneficiary" who is older than the owner, no more than 10 years younger, or disabled or chronically ill. If a life option is elected but the beneficiary does not qualify, MassMutual Ascend pays the maximum fixed period instead.
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.
Download these Great American Life instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Great American Life primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Customer Service (MassMutual Ascend, formerly Great American Life)
MassMutual Ascend, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
Claims Department
MassMutual Ascend, Attn: Claims Department, P.O. Box 5420, Cincinnati, OH 45201-5420
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