Death Claim - Death in Singapore

Death claim proceeds will be paid based on your nomination.

If you have made a nomination, we will pay one lump sum to the recipient as shown in the table below. We encourage you to make a nomination.

From 01 Sep 2009, two types of nominations can be made under the Insurance Act – Revocable & Irrevocable.

The nomination that you have previously made for your Central Provident Fund savings will not apply for your policy.

The claim proceeds will be paid to your Proper Claimant or legal representatives of your estate, in accordance with the Insurance Act.

Before making payment to a Proper Claimant, we will make reasonable enquiries to check if the deceased was married and had children. A Proper Claimant is usually the deceased's immediate family member (e.g. spouse, parent, child or sibling). The Proper Claimant can also be the executor of a will or the administrator of the deceased’s estate.

We reserve the right not to make payment to Proper Claimants under Section 61 of the Insurance Act should the following scenarios occur.

• Proper Claimant cannot be determined
• Any dispute amongst family members
• Family members are unable to furnish documentary evidence to prove their relations with the deceased

We would then request for a certified true copy of the Grant of Probate or the Grant of Letters of Administration before releasing the claim proceeds to the deceased's estate.

More information on the Insurance Act

Your next-of-kin will need to go to the relevant authority to request for a copy of the documents to be extracted at his / her own expense. If he / she is unable to provide the relevant documents, we reserve the right to make payment to the Estate of the deceased only upon submission of a certified true copy of the Grant of Probate or the Grant of Letters of Administration.

If the deceased had left behind a Will, the representative will be the Executor appointed in the Will. If the deceased did not leave behind a Will (i.e. died intestate), the representative would be the spouse or one of the next-of-kin(s) of the deceased, and this representative is called an Administrator.

Upon receiving the Grant of Probate, the Executor distributes the deceased’s estate according to the provisions of his Will. Upon receiving the Grant of Letters of Administration, the Administrator distributes the deceased’s estate in accordance with the Intestate Succession Act (for non-Muslims) or Islamic inheritance laws (for Muslims).

Both the Grant of Probate and the Grant of Letters of Administration can be applied through a lawyer or the Public Trustee, who will draw up and submit a petition to the High Court for approval. The approval from the court may be given any time from six months onwards, depending on the complexities of the deceased's estate.

If there is a nomination, the claimant does not need to apply for the Grant of Probate or the Grant of Letters of Administration.

In the absence of a nomination, a certified true copy of the Grant of Probate or the Grant of Letters of Administration is necessary for all claims above $150,000. We may exercise our discretion to pay the first $150,000 to a Proper Claimant while waiting for the Grant to be obtained. We will then pay the balance amount to the deceased’s estate upon receiving a certified true copy of the Grant.

For claims that do not exceed $150,000, we may also, exercise our discretion to waive the Grant and pay its full amount to a Proper Claimant instead.

No, the Proper Claimant will be accountable to the deceased's estate for the money received. Payment to Proper Claimant is to enable the family to receive money quickly, for immediate needs before a certified true copy of the Grant of Probate or the Grant of Letters of Administration is obtained. The payment is part of the deceased's estate and is authorised under the Insurance Act.

It depends on the type of nomination that you have made.

• Nomination made under the Co-operative Societies Act (CSA) – Cannot be superseded by the contents of a will. We would pay according to the nomination regardless of any will. More information on the Co-operative Societies Act

• Revocable Nomination made before 02 Jan 2024 under s49M(2) or made from 02 Jan 2024 onwards under s133(2) of the Insurance Act – A valid will executed after a Revocable Nomination has been made and made known to the insurer will supersede the Revocable Nomination. However, the will must satisfy specific requirements under the Wills Act 1838. For example, the will must provide for the disposition of all death benefits under the policy and it must specify the particulars of the policy.

The Will must be made in accordance with the Wills Act 1838 which provides for the disposition of all death benefits under the relevant policy; and specifies the particulars of that relevant policy referred to in regulation 5(3) of the Insurance (NOB) Regulations 2009.

Regulation 5(3) of the Insurance (NOB) Regulations 2009 lists the following particulars:

1. the name of the registered insurer that issued the relevant policy;
2. the policy number;
3. the name of each beneficiary to whom any portion (including the whole) of the death benefits under the relevant policy is bequeathed;
4. where a beneficiary referred to in sub-paragraph (c) is an individual, the following particulars of the beneficiary: NRIC/BC/Foreign passport number, address, date of birth.
5. where a beneficiary referred to in sub-paragraph (c) is not an individual, the following particulars of the beneficiary:
   • the Singapore unique entity number of the beneficiary or, if the beneficiary does not have such a number, any other official registration number which identifies and is unique to the entity; and
   • the address of the beneficiary;
6. the portion of the death benefits under the relevant policy which is bequeathed to each beneficiary.

Please refer to the FAQs for more information.