Frequently asked questions by sellers
1) Is it true I can sell my endowment policy instead of surrendering it?
Absolutely, you can sell your endowment policy for more money than its surrender value
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2) Why didn't I hear about the option of selling my policy other than surrendering the policy?
Your financial adviser is not obligated to tell you that there is an alternative to surrendering your Policy. You can sell your policy besides surrendering your policy. We pay you higher than the surrender value. However not all endowment policies can be sold. Only those policies bought with cash can be sold.
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​3) How is the transfer of ownership of endowment policy done?
The transfer of ownership is done through absolute assignment. It is done at the Insurance Company Customer Service center. The transfer is irrevocable and another absolute assignment has to be executed to effect another transfer.
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4) What is an assignment?
Assignment of a life insurance policy means transfer of rights from one person to another. You can assign/sell your endowment policy to another person/entity instead of surrendering your policy. This process is referred to as Assignment and is governed under Policies of Assurance Act (Chapter 392) The person who assigns the insurance policy is called the Assignor (policy owner) and the one to whom the policy has been assigned, i.e. the person to whom the policy rights have been transferred is called the Assignee.
Under the Singapore law, only the assignee can give a valid discharge of all payment obligations to the insurer.
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5) Can I sell my endowment policies bought with CPF or SRS money?
No, endowment policies bought with CPF or SRS money cannot be transferred/sold. We buy endowment policies bought with cash only with no trust nomination.
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6)What do I need to do to sell my policy?
Submit a request for a quotation giving information as given in the Request for quotation form . Please give us the required information so that we can give you a good price. Contact us if you need help. We will contact within 3 working days. If the policy is sellable, we will give you a good offer price. If you agree with the offer price, we can meet at the Insurance company service center to sign all the Absolute assignment form and submit the forms to the Insurance company to process the transfer of ownership.
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7) Is there any nomination or beneficiary to the Policy?
The Insurance Company requires any nomination or beneficiary to be revoked or removed first prior to Assignment.
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8) When do I get paid for selling my policy?
Steps Specialist will first pay you 20% of the agreed sum to you upon submission of the Absolute assignment forms to the Insurance company for transferring the ownership of the policy. After the transferred is completed which may take 2 weeks, Steps Specialist will pay you the balance amount.
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​9) What happens if I pass away after selling my policy?
Once policy is transferred to Steps Specialist, the Assignee and not your estate will be paid the death benefits as only the Assignee ie the new policy owner has all the rights to the policy.
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10) Is Steps Specialist licensed by the MAS?
No, Steps Specialist is not an insurance company or a financial adviser. Steps Specialist is an independent service provider for Singapore traded endowment policies. We are investors who are keen to buy over from Policy owners their endowment policies which they want to sell. We are only interested in endowment policies issued by insurers based in Singapore. Absolute assignment, the transfer of ownership, is governed by the laws of Singapore and is registered and endorsed by the insurers using standard procedures by the respective Insurance companies.