To cancel a Western & Southern life insurance policy, the policy owner signs a written request to the company that issued it, such as The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company or Western-Southern Life Assurance Company, and asks for written confirmation that coverage has ended. Western & Southern is a group of seven life insurers, so read the company name on your policy first. If the policy is new, Western & Southern says the free look period typically lasts 10 days, depending on state law.
Western & Southern Financial Group, founded in Cincinnati in 1888, lists seven life insurance companies in its family of companies and states that each company has financial responsibility only for its own products and services.
Western & Southern is seven insurers, and the paperwork follows the one on your policy
Western & Southern is not one insurance company. Its own site lists seven life insurers in the group, including The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, Western-Southern Life Assurance Company, Columbus Life, The Lafayette Life Insurance Company and Gerber Life Insurance Company. It also says each company has financial responsibility only for its own products and services. That matters because cancellation follows the issuer, not the name on the mailer. The company's Request for Policy Transaction form is headed for the first two, both in Cincinnati. A Gerber Life or Lafayette Life policy is handled by that company, so a form sent to the wrong one will not reach your record. The form also shows what a full surrender involves. It needs the owner's signature, and it says a printed signature is unacceptable unless a reason is given. It asks for a tax ID because a surrender can be taxable. If part of the payout is taxable, it says 10% federal tax is withheld unless you choose otherwise. In community property states it says your spouse may need to consent. And the same form offers a partial surrender, a policy loan, and using dividends or loan value to pay premiums, so the middle options sit right next to the last one.
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 Western & Southern company issued the policy. Look at the front of the policy or the latest statement. The group has seven life insurers, and the one named there is the one that services the policy. Gerber Life policies are handled by Gerber Life, which has its own guide linked below.
- What kind of policy it is. Term coverage has no cash value, so ending it only stops the protection. Whole life and universal life can hold cash value, and your statement shows the current figure. Western & Southern's own forms still refer to Weekly Premium Policies, the older small policies many families hold, so check which kind you have.
- Whether you are the owner. The owner signs the request. On older family policies the original owner may have passed away or the policy may have been assigned. The surrender form asks the owner to certify that the policy is not assigned or involved in bankruptcy, so settle that before anything is signed.
- Dividends, paid-up additions and loans. If your policy pays dividends, the company's form lists several dividend options and a paid-up additions rider. It notes that surrendering the entire policy includes all rider values. If you have borrowed against the policy, the loan comes out of what you receive.
- Taxes and withholding. The form says the taxable portion of a surrender is subject to 10% federal income tax withholding unless you elect otherwise, and that you still owe the tax either way. Ask a tax professional how much of your payout would be taxable before you choose.
When cancelling is the right answer
Cancelling is the right call when the coverage no longer fits your life, or when you already hold approved coverage that is in force. If the policy is an old whole life policy with a long record behind it, ask what a reduced paid-up option or a policy loan would leave in place before you surrender. If the review shows what you have still fits, keeping it is a good outcome.
Common questions
How do I cancel a Western & Southern life insurance policy?
The policy owner sends a signed written request to the company named on the policy. For a full surrender of a permanent policy, Western & Southern's Request for Policy Transaction form has a cash surrender section for the entire policy. Use the address and instructions printed on your policy or statement, and ask the company to confirm in writing that the policy has ended and the date coverage stopped.
Can I cancel a new policy and get my money back?
Western & Southern says the free look period for a new life insurance contract varies by state law but typically lasts 10 days, and that if you cancel inside it the insurer must return your premium payments without surrender charges. Your policy prints its own free look wording, so check the exact number of days there. Notify the company or your financial representative right away.
Is stopping my payments the same as cancelling?
No. Life policies include a grace period, often about a month, and your policy states the exact length. If premiums stay unpaid after that, the policy can lapse. Some permanent policies move to a paid-up or extended term option automatically when premiums stop, and some do not. A written cancellation gives you a clear end date and a confirmation, which is why it is the cleaner route.
Will I get cash back if I cancel?
Only if the policy has cash value. Term insurance has none. A whole life or universal life policy may have a cash surrender value, shown on your statement, less any loan. Part of it can be taxable. This is a good moment to ask what a partial surrender or a policy loan would look like, since the company's form offers both.
I have a Gerber Life policy. Is this the right guide?
Partly. Gerber Life Insurance Company is in the Western & Southern family but is its own company, and it handles its own policies. Our Gerber Life guide covers the Grow-Up Plan and how ownership passes to the child at age 21, which is a different set of questions.
Can a family member cancel for a parent?
The company's forms are signed by the owner. If the owner has passed away, or cannot sign, ask the company what legal documents it requires, such as a power of attorney or proof of death, before sending anything. Its contact page lists separate fax lines for power of attorney and legal documents, so asking first saves a round trip.
Free · Read it before you cancel
Read it before you end it.
Bring your Western & Southern 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 Western & Southern 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.