Estate planning at Nationwide
How to protect 12 Nationwide accounts — manage beneficiaries online, fund a trust by mail, and file death claims
Nationwide Life and Annuity Service
Nationwide Headquarters, One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2220. Annuity forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021. Life forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182835, Columbus, OH 43218-2835.
Nationwide Life and Annuity Service
Nationwide Headquarters, One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2220. Annuity forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021. Life forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182835, Columbus, OH 43218-2835.
Annuity and Life CARE Team (Customers Are the Reason we Exist)
Annuity claims: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021 (overnight: Nationwide Insurance, 1-LC-F4, 1 Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2239). Retirement plan claims: Nationwide Retirement Solutions, PO Box 182797, Columbus, OH 43218-2797.
Nationwide offers 12 insurance products that play a central role in estate planning. Because policy proceeds pass directly to named beneficiaries—bypassing probate entirely—keeping designations current is one of the highest-impact steps policyholders can take.
Managing beneficiaries at Nationwide is straightforward—changes can be made online, by mail, and by phone, typically taking 15-30 minutes. Trust funding is also available, allowing families to name a trust as the policy beneficiary or establish an irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT).
Nationwide has documented procedures for both preparing accounts during your lifetime and handling claims when an account holder passes away.
Preparing your estate
Beneficiaries and trust funding
How to manage beneficiaries online, fund a trust by mail, and review 12 account types at Nationwide.
View details →When someone dies
Death claim process
7-step process, 8 required documents, and contact information for survivors.
View details →Frequently asked questions
No. Both Nationwide beneficiary change forms — APO-5309 for annuities and LAF-0119AO for life insurance — require you to re-list ALL of your primary and contingent beneficiaries, because the signed form supersedes every previous designation. Nationwide states explicitly that it will not accept a form with the primary beneficiary section left blank, and will not accept the words "same" or "no change." So if you only meant to swap a contingent beneficiary and you leave the primary section empty, you have not made a partial change — you have submitted an incomplete form that will be rejected. Allocations must also be whole percentages totaling exactly 100%; fractions such as 1/3 will be rejected or delay processing.
Sources
Data sourced from Nationwide primary sources (19 pages reviewed). How we research.
Nationwide Life and Annuity Service
Nationwide Headquarters, One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2220. Annuity forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021. Life forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182835, Columbus, OH 43218-2835.
Nationwide Life and Annuity Service
Nationwide Headquarters, One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2220. Annuity forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021. Life forms: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182835, Columbus, OH 43218-2835.
Annuity and Life CARE Team (Customers Are the Reason we Exist)
Annuity claims: Nationwide Life Insurance Company, PO Box 182021, Columbus, OH 43218-2021 (overnight: Nationwide Insurance, 1-LC-F4, 1 Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 43215-2239). Retirement plan claims: Nationwide Retirement Solutions, PO Box 182797, Columbus, OH 43218-2797.
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your Nationwide accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
