Check my policyHome / Surrender guides / For a parent
You need legal authority to surrender someone else's policy. If your parent can still make decisions, they sign the insurer's form themselves. If they have lost mental capacity, you need a registered Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) naming you as donee, or a court order appointing you as deputy.
Last reviewed 16 October 2026 · General information, not legal advice.
It depends on your parent's situation, not on how close you are to them.
| Your parent's situation | Who can surrender | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Can still make their own decisions | Your parent, as policyowner | Nothing from you. You can help with the form, the calls and the documents. |
| Has lost mental capacity and made an LPA | You, as donee, if the LPA covers property and affairs | The registered LPA and a doctor's certification that your parent has lost capacity |
| Has lost mental capacity with no LPA | A deputy appointed by the court | A court order appointing you as deputy, with the powers you need |
| Has died | A nominee, or the executor or administrator | The death certificate, and a grant of probate or letters of administration where there is no nomination. Inherited policies |
The Office of the Public Guardian sets out how donees use an LPA with banks, insurers and other agencies. Using a Lasting Power of Attorney
A donee can act only once a registered medical practitioner has certified that the donor has lost mental capacity.
The Public Guardian asks donees to send the electronic LPA through their OPG Online dashboard, so the insurer sees the latest version.
Usually your NRIC as donee and the doctor's report certifying the loss of capacity. Ask the insurer for its list first.
Use the insurer's own form, signing in your capacity as donee. Every insurer's forms
The money belongs to your parent. Pay it into their account and use it only for them.
Donees must use their powers in line with the Mental Capacity Act's Code of Practice. Surrender only if it is right for your parent, not for the family.
A whole life policy may pay a death benefit your parent meant for someone. Ending it removes that.
A policy loan, a paid-up policy or a partial withdrawal may raise the money without ending the policy. Keep, sell or surrender
Note why you chose to surrender, and keep the insurer's letters and the payout record.
Two arrangements families often rely on, which won't let you surrender a policy for a parent who has lost capacity.
It stops working if the person who gave it loses mental capacity. Only an LPA is designed to continue.
A nominee receives money when the policy pays out on death. It gives no right to surrender the policy while the owner is alive.
For a participating endowment or whole life policy paid in cash, we may pay more than the surrender value. We can buy from a donee or deputy whose authority covers the sale, with the same written offer beside the net surrender value.
Not if they have lost mental capacity. You would need a court order appointing you as deputy. If they still have capacity, they sign the form themselves.
Only after a registered medical practitioner certifies that your parent has lost mental capacity. If they regain it, you must step aside.
Send the electronic LPA from your OPG Online dashboard, and give the insurer the documents it asks for, usually your NRIC and the doctor's report.
Someone has to apply to the court to be appointed as deputy. Some applications qualify for a simplified process. A lawyer or the Community Justice Centre can help.
No. It belongs to your parent, and you must use it only in their interests.
If your parent has died, the policy passes under the nomination or to the estate. A policy your parents bought for you
Our surrender planner lists the form, documents and questions for your parent's insurer.