How Do I Write a Letter of Instruction to Sammons Financial?

Send it to Sammons Financial's estate/claims department: Life Insurance: One Sammons Plaza, Sioux Falls, SD 57193 | Annuity: P.O. Box 10385, Des Moines, IA 50306-0385 (also 8300 Mills Civic Parkway, West Des Moines, IA 50266). You can reach the department at 1-800-733-2524.

Sammons Financial lists these among its required documents: Completed Claimant Statement / Proof of Death Claimant's Statement (form O-2818-1 for North American life, 3864-1 for Midland National life, 14497Z for North American annuity, 14497Y for Midland National annuity) - each beneficiary must submit their own; Original certified death certificate issued by the state in which the deceased passed away, with cause and manner of death listed (not a photocopy); Policy or contract number; Government-issued ID for beneficiary. The prepared letter includes an enclosure checklist drawn from Sammons Financial's recorded requirements.

Processing goal is 10 calendar days after receipt of all required documentation. Benefits are typically issued within two weeks to 60 days. Processing time may be extended if additional review or documentation is required. The funeral director handling final arrangements can usually help obtain certified death certificate copies. North American paid over $547 million in death claims on life insurance policies in 2024.

Sammons Financial provides its own letter-of-instruction form. We complete that official form with your information; you print, sign, and send it.

It depends on the capacity you are acting in. An executor or administrator encloses Letters Testamentary (when there is a will) or Letters of Administration (when there is not); a successor trustee encloses a certificate of trust; a successor under a small estate encloses that state’s small estate affidavit. The prepared letter lists the proof-of-authority document for your role alongside the institution’s required documents.

A letter of instruction is the written request an institution asks for when settling a deceased customer’s account. It identifies the decedent and the account, states the capacity you are acting in, and tells the institution what to do with the account.