To cancel Aflac life insurance, send the company named on your contract a signed, dated written request that gives your policy number and the date you want coverage to end, then get written confirmation that the policy has ended and billing has stopped. Aflac whole life is underwritten by American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus, and Aflac Final Expense is underwritten by Tier One Insurance Company, so read your contract before you write anything.
Aflac's own website states that Aflac Final Expense insurance is underwritten by Tier One Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Aflac Incorporated, and administered by Aetna Life Insurance Company, while its whole life brochures name American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus as the underwriter.
The name Aflac can sit on three different kinds of contract
Most people who say they want to cancel Aflac life insurance are holding one of three things, and the request goes to a different place for each. Aflac's whole life brochures say the policy is underwritten by American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus. Aflac Final Expense Whole Life is a different company: the disclaimer on Aflac's own site says it is underwritten by Tier One Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Aflac Incorporated, and administered by Aetna Life Insurance Company. The third is not life insurance at all. Accident, hospital indemnity, cancer and critical illness plans are supplemental insurance, and ending one of them does not touch a life policy, just as ending the life policy does not touch them. Payroll deduction adds one more detail. Aflac's own cancellation form says that when premiums come out of your pay before tax and you cancel outside open enrollment, your employer has to sign as well, because of IRS cafeteria plan rules. So find the company name and the policy number on the contract first, and name only the policy you mean to end.
How to cancel, step by step
- Find your policy number. It is on the policy itself and on any statement. Work from your own documents rather than from a letter you were not expecting.
- Put the request in writing. Sign and date it, name the policy number, and state the exact date you want coverage to end. A phone call alone leaves you nothing to point at later.
- Say if you are inside the free-look window. If the policy is new, your state may entitle you to a full refund. Make that request explicit rather than assuming it is applied.
- Ask for written confirmation. You want the termination date and, if there is cash value, the amount being released. Keep it.
- Stop the payment last, not first. Only once the insurer has confirmed the policy has ended. Stopping the draft first creates a lapse rather than a cancellation, which is messier and can cost you the cash value.
What to check before you send it
These are the things people most often wish they had looked at first. None of them are reasons not to cancel. They are the difference between a decision and a regret.
- Which Aflac product you actually hold. Look at the product name on the statement. Whole life and Final Expense Whole Life are life insurance. Accident, hospital indemnity, cancer, critical illness and disability plans are separate contracts that often arrive in the same envelope. Each has its own policy number, and a request that names the wrong one can end the wrong coverage.
- The company printed on the contract. Aflac's materials name American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus for its whole life, Tier One Insurance Company for Final Expense, and American Family Life Assurance Company of New York for New York policyholders. Address your written request to the company named on your own contract, and use the service details printed on your policy documents and statements.
- The cash value and surrender fees, in writing. Aflac's cancellation explainer says to find out the cash value a whole life policy has accumulated, and what the surrender fees may be, before you contact the insurer. Its published life cancellation form adds that for a whole life policy with cash value, Aflac sends a cash surrender application, and the policy is not terminated until that application is received and processed. Ask for the surrender figure on paper first.
- What happens if the premium stops. Aflac's Final Expense brochure says that when a premium goes unpaid past the grace period, a nonforfeiture option applies if the policy has enough cash value: reduced paid-up insurance, extended term insurance, or an automatic premium loan. In the early years there may not be enough value for any of them. Stopping payment is not the same as cancelling, so ask what would apply to you.
- How the premium is paid. Aflac says its policies are portable and can be paid by autopay or by payroll deduction. If the deduction is after tax, Aflac's cancellation form is clear that you may generally cancel at any time. If it is pre-tax, expect to need your employer's signature outside open enrollment. Confirm the draft or deduction has actually stopped on your next statement or pay stub.
- The early years of a modified Final Expense plan. Aflac's Final Expense brochure describes a Modified Plan that pays a limited benefit for non-accidental death in policy years 1 and 2 and the full benefit in year 3. If you are replacing a policy, a new one can start its own waiting period over, and it is priced on your health today. Have the new policy approved and in force before you end this one.
When cancelling is the right answer
Cancelling is a sound choice when the reason for the coverage is gone. The funeral is already funded another way, the debts it covered are paid off, or you hold two small policies doing the same job. It also makes sense when the premium has become a strain and you have looked at a loan or a lower amount first. If the policy has cash value, take the surrender figure in writing and remember that interest earnings you receive from a surrender can be taxable.
Common questions
How do I cancel an Aflac life insurance policy?
Send the company named on your contract a signed, dated request with your full name, policy number and the date you want coverage to end, and ask for written confirmation that the policy has ended and billing has stopped. Aflac's cancellation explainer says you may need to fill out a form for term coverage, and for whole life you find the cash value and surrender fees first and then complete the surrender forms. Use the contact details printed on your policy documents.
Is Aflac Final Expense issued by Aflac?
Aflac's own disclaimer says Aflac Final Expense insurance is underwritten by Tier One Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Aflac Incorporated, and administered by Aetna Life Insurance Company. Your contract names the issuing company, so address your cancellation request to that company. Our Aetna cancellation guide covers the Aetna side of the paperwork.
Will cancelling my Aflac accident or hospital plan cancel my life policy?
No. They are separate contracts with separate policy numbers. Aflac's cancellation form lists each policy number and coverage type on its own line, so name only the plan you want to end and check the next statement to confirm the others are still in force and billing correctly.
I pay Aflac through my paycheck. Can I cancel at any time?
Aflac's published cancellation form says that if your premiums come out after tax, you may generally cancel at any time. If the deduction is pre-tax through an employer cafeteria plan, the form must be signed by you and your employer when you cancel outside open enrollment, unless a qualifying change in status has occurred. Ask your benefits team which applies to you.
How much will I get if I surrender Aflac whole life?
It depends on the policy and how long you have held it. Aflac's explainer says the payout is your cash value less surrender fees, and that surrender fees typically range from 0% to 10% of the cash value and decrease each year. In the early years there may be little or nothing. Your policy schedule and a written surrender quote give the real number.
Can I borrow against the policy instead of cancelling?
Aflac's materials say whole life policies can offer policy loans, with an annual interest rate and fees that apply. Aflac's explainer also notes that interest builds on an outstanding balance and that if the balance exceeds the cash value, the policy could lapse. An unpaid loan also reduces what your beneficiaries receive. Ask for the numbers before you borrow.
What if I only just bought the policy?
Every state gives new life policyholders a free look period, commonly 10 to 30 days after delivery, during which you can cancel and have the premium returned. The length depends on your state and your policy, so check your contract and say in your written request that you are inside the window.
Will my coverage end the day I ask to cancel?
Not usually. Most life insurers end coverage on the next premium due date or on the date they process a signed request, whichever the contract specifies. That gap matters, because until the policy actually terminates you are still covered. Never treat a phone call as the end of it: confirm the termination date in writing and keep the confirmation.
Should I just stop paying instead of cancelling?
It is simpler than it looks to do this badly. Stopping payment starts the grace period, and if the policy has cash value the insurer may keep it in force by taking loans against that value, which can quietly drain it. A written request creates a clean, dated record of what you asked for and when. Cancelling on purpose is always tidier than lapsing by accident.
Free · Read it before you cancel
Read it before you end it.
Bring your Aflac policy, or just the latest letter. We will read it with you, explain what it is worth today and what you would lose, and answer billing or paperwork questions. Keeping it is a fine result, and so is cancelling if it is right for you.
- What cancelling your Aflac policy would end
- Any cash value, dividends or riders you would give up
- Where the written request goes and what to ask for
- Billing and premium questions
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This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Cancellation terms, refunds, and free-look windows depend on your contract and your state. Policy Review Center is a free comparison and referral service, not an insurance agency, insurer, or producer, and it connects you with independent licensed agents. Carrier names are used for reference only and do not imply any endorsement or affiliation.