What to do when a Sun Life account holder dies
Contact Sun Life — 7-step process, 7 required documents, and a few business days after all documents are received in good order. claims involving minor beneficiaries, lost beneficiaries, claims without beneficiary designations, or deaths resulting from suspected criminal acts may require additional review and processing time.
Sun Life, One Sun Life Executive Park, 96 Worcester St., Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
Sun Life, One Sun Life Executive Park, 96 Worcester St., Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
Death Claims / Beneficiary Services
Sun Life, Group Life Claims, P.O. Box 81365, Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
When an insured person dies, the beneficiary or executor should contact Sun Life's Death Claims / Beneficiary Services at 1-800-247-6875 to start the claims process. Insurance proceeds are paid directly to the named beneficiary and do not go through probate. How quickly the claim is processed depends on the policy type, documentation, and cause of death.
Sun Life offers an online claims portal that makes the initial filing process more straightforward. Survivors can also initiate claims by phone or by mailing documentation directly.
Death claim process
Here is the step-by-step death claim process at Sun Life:
Filing a claim
- For group life: notify the deceased's employer, who may initiate the claim notification to Sun Life on your behalf
- Or call Sun Life directly at 800-247-6875 (Monday-Friday, 8am-8pm ET)
- For individual life: call 800-862-6266 or 800-786-5433 (1-800-SUN-LIFE)
- For term policies (SC/SU prefix): call 877-431-7379
- Complete the claimant statement section of the claim form
- Obtain a certified death certificate from the local vital records office
- Submit the completed claim form and certified death certificate to Sun Life
- Lump-sum check
- Sun Life Financial Benefit Account (for individual beneficiaries receiving $10,000 or more)
Required Documents
- Completed Death Benefits Claim Packet (GLFM-7551 for group; individual claim form for individual policies)
- Certified death certificate (original required)
- Government-issued ID for the beneficiary
- Certificate or policy number and deceased's information
- Trust documents and trustee ID (if trust is the beneficiary)
- Police report (if death was accidental, for AD&D claims)
- Letters of administration or court appointment (if no beneficiary designation on file)
Claims Contact
What to know at this institution
For group life claims, the employer typically initiates the notification to Sun Life. Claims can also be submitted or tracked online through the Sun Life member portal. Alternate mailing address for group claims: Sun Life, Group Life Claims, P.O. Box 81365, Wellesley Hills, MA 02481. For individual life insurance policies, call 800-862-6266 or 800-786-5433 (1-800-SUN-LIFE) or mail to Sun Life Financial, P.O. Box 219957, Kansas City, MO 64121-9957. For term policies (SC/SU prefix), call 877-431-7379 or email admin@sunlifeterm.com or mail to Sun Life Financial Term Center, P.O. Box 84308, Lincoln, NE 68508. Beneficiaries receiving $10,000 or more may choose the Sun Life Financial Benefit Account, an interest-bearing account with draft-writing access (interest compounded daily, credited monthly). Trust, corporate, and guardian-of-minor beneficiaries receive payment by check only. Starting January 1, 2026, Sun Life group life beneficiaries have access to Wellthy, a personalized care coordination service offering end-of-life planning resources, grief support, and a digital portal for care planning.
Prepare your letter of instruction to Sun Life
Sun Life asks for a letter of instruction alongside its claim form. We prepare a transmittal cover letter and the enclosure checklist Sun Life requires.
Build your letter of instructionHow long the process takes at Sun Life: A few business days after all documents are received in good order. Claims involving minor beneficiaries, lost beneficiaries, claims without beneficiary designations, or deaths resulting from suspected criminal acts may require additional review and processing time. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
Sun Life requires several documents to process a claim, including Completed Death Benefits Claim Packet (GLFM-7551 for group; individual claim form for individual policies), Certified death certificate (original required), and Government-issued ID for the beneficiary, and additional documentation depending on the account type. Certified copies are typically needed—photocopies are generally not accepted for death certificates or court documents.
Frequently asked questions
An ILIT is a legal arrangement where a trust owns a life insurance policy, removing the death benefit from the grantor's taxable estate for estate tax purposes. For individual Sun Life policies (whole life, universal life, and term life), ownership can be transferred to an ILIT by completing the Ownership Change Request form and the Trustee Certification/Affidavit form (IND LGFM-3239). Sun Life does not establish ILITs; you must work with an estate attorney. If a policy is transferred to an existing ILIT, it is subject to a three-year lookback rule for estate tax purposes. Group life policies cannot have their ownership transferred to a trust, but a trust can be named as the beneficiary.
For group life insurance, notify the deceased's employer, who may initiate the claim to Sun Life, or call Sun Life directly at 800-247-6875 (Monday-Friday, 8am-8pm ET). Sun Life will send the Death Benefits Claim Packet (GLFM-7551) to the beneficiary. Complete the claim form and submit it with a certified death certificate. Claims can also be submitted or tracked online through the Sun Life member portal. For individual life policies, call 800-862-6266 or 800-786-5433 (1-800-SUN-LIFE). For term policies with an SC or SU prefix, call 877-431-7379.
Beneficiaries may choose a lump-sum check or the Sun Life Financial Benefit Account. The Benefit Account is an interest-bearing account available to individual beneficiaries receiving $10,000 or more. It provides immediate access to the full benefit amount through a draft book (similar to a checkbook). Interest is compounded daily and credited monthly. If the beneficiary is a trust, corporation, or guardian of a minor, or if the benefit is less than $10,000, payment is issued by check only. If you elect the Benefit Account, policy settlement options will not be available.
In August 2013, Sun Life Financial sold its US domestic annuity business and certain US individual life lines to Delaware Life Holdings. Delaware Life Insurance Company (formerly Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (U.S.)) now services Sun Life-branded variable annuities, fixed annuities, fixed-index annuities, corporate-owned life insurance (COLI), bank-owned life insurance (BOLI), and variable life insurance policies issued before August 2013. Beneficiary changes, ownership transfers, and death claims on these policies should be directed to Delaware Life, not Sun Life. Sun Life Financial continues to service the residual block of US individual whole life, universal life, and term life policies (call 800-862-6266 for individual life, or 877-431-7379 for SC/SU prefix term policies).
Sun Life's Death Claims / Beneficiary Services can be reached by phone at 1-800-247-6875, email at usebglifeclaimsinbox@sunlife.com, and fax at 1-800-979-5128 for questions throughout the claims process.
When the deceased had multiple Sun Life policies, some may need separate claims while others can be handled together. The Death Claims / Beneficiary Services can clarify what's needed for each account type.
Sources
Data sourced from Sun Life primary sources (15 pages reviewed). How we research.
Sun Life, One Sun Life Executive Park, 96 Worcester St., Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
Sun Life, One Sun Life Executive Park, 96 Worcester St., Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
Death Claims / Beneficiary Services
Sun Life, Group Life Claims, P.O. Box 81365, Wellesley Hills, MA 02481
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