Canada Life bereavement: a second policy transfer to Countrywide Assured

Canada Life is one of the UK’s largest financial services groups, offering annuities, pensions, workplace group insurance, and investment products to hundreds of thousands of UK customers. If the person you’ve lost held a Canada Life policy, this guide explains how to notify the company, what documents you’ll need, and what happens next for each product type.

There are two important points to be aware of before you start. First, in February 2025, Canada Life transferred its individual protection policies – personal life insurance and critical illness cover – to a separate company called Countrywide Assured plc. Second, in August 2026, Canada Life transferred a further set of policies – Onshore Bonds, the Flexible Drawdown Plan, and Trustee Investment Plan policies – to the same company. If the deceased held a personal life insurance policy, a critical illness policy, an onshore bond, a flexible drawdown plan, or a trustee investment plan taken out through Canada Life, you now need to contact Countrywide Assured rather than Canada Life directly. This guide covers all of these.

Quick reference:

• Online bereavement notification (all products): canadalife.co.uk/bereavement-notification
• Annuities and retirement products: 0345 606 0708, Monday–Friday 9am–5pm
• Workplace group insurance (group life, income protection, group critical illness): 0345 223 8000, Monday–Friday 9am–5pm
• Transferred individual protection (personal life insurance / critical illness): Countrywide Assured – 0333 015 5600, Monday–Friday 9am–5pm

How to notify Canada Life of a death

Canada Life’s preferred route for bereavement notification is its online form at canadalife.co.uk/bereavement-notification. The form asks for the deceased’s full name, date of birth, date of death, and country of death, along with the relevant policy number or pension payroll number if you have it. You do not need to have all the policy details to hand – Canada Life will contact you to gather anything else they need.

Before you contact Canada Life, the most important question is which type of product the deceased held, because each has a different contact team. The table below sets out which number to call for each product type.

Sources: Canada Life contact page, verified September 2026; Canada Life bereavement notification page, verified September 2026; Canada Life – transferring Onshore Bonds, Flexible Drawdown Plan and Trustee Investment Plan policies to Countrywide Assured, verified September 2026.

If you are unsure which type of policy the deceased held, start with the online notification form or call 0345 606 0708. Canada Life can search their records by name, date of birth, and address. For the Countrywide Assured transfer, see the dedicated section below.

What to have ready when you call or fill in the form:

• The deceased’s full name, date of birth, address, and date of death
• Policy or account number (check any welcome letters, annual statements, or bank direct debits)
• Your own name and relationship to the deceased
• Preferred contact method and best time to reach you

What documents you’ll need

The documents required depend on the product type and the complexity of the estate. Canada Life’s own bereavement support guidance says it may ask for a death certificate rather than listing one as a fixed requirement for every case – so do not assume you need it in hand before making first contact.

For all products:

• Death certificate – Canada Life’s bereavement support page states it “might ask you or the executor” to send a copy or the original for their records, alongside a copy of the will and a completed claims form. If you need additional certified copies for other organisations, order them from the General Register Office (England and Wales) at a cost of £12.50 each. Source: Canada Life – Bereavement Support Services, verified September 2026; gov.uk/order-copy-birth-death-marriage-certificate, verified September 2026.
• Your identity and relationship to the deceased – Canada Life may ask for a copy of your passport, driving licence, or similar.

For annuity and retirement income claims:

• Death certificate
• Policy number or pension payroll number (found on any P60 the deceased received from Canada Life)
• Completed claim form (Canada Life will send this to you)

For workplace group life insurance claims:

• Completed claim form (available from Canada Life’s website or provided by the employer’s HR team)
• Death certificate
• If the scheme is set up as a master trust or excepted solution: a family information form may also be required – Canada Life will advise

For pension death benefits:

• Death certificate
• Expression of wishes or nomination form (if the deceased completed one)
• The grant of probate or letters of administration may or may not be required depending on the policy – Canada Life will confirm

For Countrywide Assured (transferred individual protection policies, onshore bonds, drawdown plans, or trustee investment plans):

• Death certificate
• Original policy documents (if available)
• Completed claim form – Countrywide Assured will send this once notified
• Grant of probate if required (they will advise based on policy type and value)

The policy transfers: what happened with individual protection, bonds, and drawdown plans

Canada Life has completed two separate transfers of business to Countrywide Assured plc, a subsidiary of Chesnara plc. Both matter for bereavement, because they change who you need to contact – but they cover different products and happened at different times.

Transfer 1 – individual protection (February 2025). Canada Life’s book of individual onshore protection policies – personal life insurance, critical illness cover, and related products sold directly to individuals – was transferred under a court-sanctioned Part VII transfer under the Financial Services Markets Act 2000. The transfer was approved by the High Court on 3 February 2025 and took effect on 23 February 2025. It covered approximately 37,900 policies.

Transfer 2 – Onshore Bonds, Flexible Drawdown Plan, and Trustee Investment Plan (August 2026). Canada Life has since transferred a further set of policies – its Onshore Bonds, Flexible Drawdown Plan, and Trustee Investment Plan products – to the same company, Countrywide Assured. This transfer was approved by the High Court on 17 July 2026 and completed on 3 August 2026.

In both cases, the terms of the policy have not changed. What has changed is who administers it. If the person you’ve lost held a personal life insurance policy, a critical illness policy, an onshore bond, a flexible drawdown plan, or a trustee investment plan with Canada Life, you now need to contact Countrywide Assured directly rather than Canada Life.

Countrywide Assured contact details (both transfers):

• Phone: 0333 015 5600 (Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm)
• Email: queries@countrywideassuredplc.co.uk

Canada Life’s own website confirms both transfers and directs affected customers to Countrywide Assured. Sources: Canada Life – transferring policies to Countrywide Assured (individual protection), verified September 2026; Canada Life – transferring Onshore Bonds, Flexible Drawdown Plan and Trustee Investment Plan policies to Countrywide Assured, verified September 2026.

A note on the Canada Life bereavement notification form: it is still the right starting point for products Canada Life still administers directly – annuities, pensions, and workplace group insurance. For any of the transferred products above, contact Countrywide Assured directly rather than starting with Canada Life’s own form.

What happens to an annuity

An annuity is a product that provides a guaranteed income in retirement. Canada Life is one of the UK’s largest annuity providers. What happens when an annuity holder dies depends entirely on the specific policy terms agreed at the time the annuity was set up.

There are several common variations:

• Single-life annuity: Payments stop on the death of the annuitant. Nothing passes to a spouse, partner, or estate – this is how most basic annuities work.
• Joint-life annuity: Payments continue to the surviving spouse or partner, usually at a reduced rate (commonly 50% or 67% of the original amount). This continues for the lifetime of the survivor.
• Annuity with a guaranteed period: If the annuitant dies during the guaranteed period (commonly five or ten years from when payments began), the income continues to the named beneficiary for the remainder of that period.
• Value-protected annuity: If the annuitant dies before receiving payments equal to the original purchase price, the difference is paid as a lump sum to the estate.

The first step is to check the original annuity documentation – it will specify which type was taken out. If you cannot find the paperwork, call Canada Life on 0345 606 0708 with the deceased’s name and date of birth and they will locate the policy.

For context on how different types of annuity are taxed when paid to beneficiaries, the relevant HMRC guidance is at gov.uk/tax-on-pension.

What happens to a pension

Pensions held with Canada Life – including group workplace pensions and legacy personal pensions – are handled differently from most other assets at death. For a broader explanation of how pensions pass on death, see our guide on what happens to a pension when someone dies.

Workplace pension death benefits

Canada Life administers group workplace pension schemes for many employers. When an employee dies, death benefits are typically paid at the discretion of the scheme trustees, guided by any expression of wishes or nomination form the deceased completed with their employer.

These discretionary payments are generally outside the estate for the purposes of inheritance tax under current HMRC rules – though this is due to change from April 2027 (see below).

If the deceased was under 75 at the time of death: lump sum death benefits paid within two years of Canada Life being notified are generally tax-free for the recipient. After two years, or if the deceased was 75 or over, death benefits are taxable as income for the recipient at their marginal rate.

Source: gov.uk/tax-on-pension, verified May 2026.

Expression of wishes

If the deceased completed an expression of wishes form – sometimes called a beneficiary nomination or death benefit nomination – this tells the scheme trustees who the deceased wanted to receive their pension death benefits. While trustees are not legally bound by it, they follow it in the overwhelming majority of cases.

If no expression of wishes was on file, the trustees will investigate to identify appropriate beneficiaries, which takes longer. If you can locate any relevant paperwork – including financial adviser correspondence or pension statements – share it with Canada Life when you contact them.

The employer’s HR department is often the best place to start, as they will hold the scheme details and can contact Canada Life on your behalf if needed.

Workplace group life insurance

Many employers provide death-in-service cover through a Canada Life group life insurance scheme. If the deceased was in employment and their employer provided this benefit, it may be one of the most significant financial assets in the estate.

Group life schemes typically pay a lump sum of two to four times the employee’s annual salary – the exact amount depends on the employer’s scheme terms. The benefit is usually written in trust, which means it is paid directly to nominated beneficiaries without going through the deceased’s estate and without waiting for probate.

To claim, contact Canada Life’s group customer services team on 0345 223 8000, or email grouplifeclaims@canadalife.co.uk. The employer’s HR team will also have details of the scheme and can help facilitate the claim.

Canada Life’s target is to process group life claims within five working days of receiving a complete application. Source: Canada Life group life insurance claims page, verified May 2026.

Note that death-in-service benefits payable directly from registered pension schemes are excluded from the April 2027 inheritance tax changes. They remain outside the taxable estate. Source: gov.uk/government/consultations/inheritance-tax-on-pensions-liability-reporting-and-payment, verified May 2026.

Probate and Canada Life

Whether Canada Life requires a grant of probate depends on the product type and the value involved.

• Annuities: These stop or continue to a joint annuitant – they do not form part of the estate in the conventional sense, so probate is not usually required for the annuity itself.
• Group life insurance: Paid under trust, so probate is not required. The trustees distribute directly to beneficiaries.
• Individual protection policies (via Countrywide Assured): Probate may be required depending on the policy terms and whether it was written in trust. Countrywide Assured will advise when you notify them.
• Investments and bonds: Typically form part of the estate and may require probate above a certain threshold. An Onshore Bond, Flexible Drawdown Plan, or Trustee Investment Plan is now held by Countrywide Assured, not Canada Life, following the August 2026 transfer – contact them for the specific threshold applicable to the product. Other Canada Life investment products not covered by that transfer remain with Canada Life.

For general information on when probate is needed and how to apply, see our guides on do I need probate and how to apply for probate.

Canada Life also provides a probate helpline as part of its workplace protection package. This is a free, confidential service offering legal and financial guidance on estate administration for employees covered by Canada Life workplace policies and their immediate family members. Call 0808 164 3079, Monday–Friday 8am–8pm. Source: Canada Life probate helpline, verified May 2026.

The April 2027 pension inheritance tax change

From 6 April 2027, unused pension funds and most pension death benefits will be included in a person’s estate for inheritance tax purposes – a significant change from the current rules, under which pension assets sit outside the estate entirely.

The change was announced in the October 2024 Autumn Budget and confirmed in a government consultation response published in July 2025. The stated aim is to stop pension pots being used primarily as a vehicle to transfer wealth rather than to fund retirement.

There is one important exception: death-in-service benefits payable directly from registered pension schemes remain outside the estate for inheritance tax, so group life insurance provided by an employer through Canada Life is unaffected.

For anyone with a Canada Life workplace pension or annuity who is concerned about the IHT implications, the best course of action before April 2027 is to take advice from a solicitor or qualified financial adviser. The nil-rate band is currently £325,000 per person (rising to £500,000 with the residence nil-rate band where applicable). Source: gov.uk/inheritance-tax, verified May 2026.

For a full guide to inheritance tax and how it interacts with pension assets, see our guide on inheritance tax.

How long does it take?

Timelines depend on product type, the completeness of the documentation, and whether probate is required.

The most common reason for delays is incomplete documentation. If Canada Life or Countrywide Assured has to request information more than once, each exchange adds time. Providing the death certificate, any policy paperwork you can find, and the expression of wishes documents at the outset keeps things moving.

Things to watch out for

Check which company now holds the policy. If the deceased took out a personal life insurance policy, a critical illness policy, an onshore bond, a flexible drawdown plan, or a trustee investment plan with Canada Life, it may now be administered by Countrywide Assured following the 2025 or 2026 transfers described above. Contact Countrywide Assured directly for these products rather than starting with Canada Life.

Expression of wishes for workplace pensions. This is the single most important document for pension death benefits. If the deceased had a financial adviser, they may hold a copy. If not, check any pension-related paperwork or contact the employer’s HR department. Without it, Canada Life’s trustees have to make their own enquiries, which takes significantly longer.

Death-in-service cover through an employer. Many people do not know they have this benefit until after a death. Ask the employer’s HR department whether the deceased was covered by a Canada Life group life scheme – the death benefit can be two to four times the annual salary.

The two-year window for pension death benefits. If the deceased was under 75, lump sum pension death benefits are generally tax-free if paid within two years of Canada Life being notified. Prompt notification matters.

Canada Life annuity overpayments. If Canada Life is not notified promptly, they may continue paying the annuity. Any overpayments made after the date of death will need to be returned. Keep records of any payments received.

Jointly held policies. If the deceased held a joint annuity or joint policy with a surviving spouse or partner, Canada Life will need to be notified so that payments or policy terms can be adjusted. The surviving policyholder should contact Canada Life directly.

Summary

Canada Life’s products fall into several distinct categories, and each has a different contact team. The starting point for any notification of a product Canada Life still administers is the online form at canadalife.co.uk/bereavement-notification.

For annuities and retirement income, call 0345 606 0708 (Monday–Friday 9am–5pm). For workplace group life insurance and group protection, call 0345 223 8000 or email grouplifeclaims@canadalife.co.uk. For individual protection policies taken out before February 2025, or for an Onshore Bond, Flexible Drawdown Plan, or Trustee Investment Plan transferred in August 2026, those policies are now held by Countrywide Assured – call 0333 015 5600.

Canada Life’s own bereavement guidance says it may ask for a death certificate rather than requiring one for the initial contact – it is still worth having a copy and any policy paperwork ready, along with details of the expression of wishes if there is a pension involved, but do not delay calling while you gather documents. Canada Life has a dedicated team for bereavement notifications and will guide you through the next steps for each product once they know what the deceased held.

If the deceased also held products with another major provider, our guides on notifying Aviva when someone dies, notifying Legal & General when someone dies, and notifying Royal London when someone dies cover their separate processes. For Scottish Widows policies – particularly pensions and savings – see our guide to notifying Scottish Widows when someone dies. For Standard Life pensions or investments, see our guide to notifying Standard Life when someone dies.

If the deceased held a Sun Life over-50s plan, funeral plan, or Guaranteed Inheritance Plan, see our guide to notifying Sun Life when someone dies.

For a full list of companies to notify after a death, see our guide to notifying companies after a death.