Yes, a whole life policy issued by Global Atlantic or one of its companies, including Forethought Life Insurance Company, can be sold in a life settlement, and the carrier’s permission is not required. You own the contract, a buyer purchases it from you for a lump sum, and the buyer takes over the premiums and becomes the beneficiary. Global Atlantic’s role is limited to recording the change of ownership after closing. Whether a sale makes sense depends on the insured’s age and health, the death benefit, and how the offer compares to what the policy is worth to you kept.
Global Atlantic owners have a genuine who-holds-my-policy question to answer first. Global Atlantic Financial Group grew out of a business originally established within Goldman Sachs and later became an independent company, and KKR, the global investment firm, acquired a majority stake and then completed its acquisition of the remainder of the business in 2024. Along the way Global Atlantic assembled its life operations largely by acquiring existing companies and blocks: Forethought, long known for preneed and final expense coverage, and Accordia Life and Annuity Company, which took on a large block of individual life policies previously issued by Aviva USA. Verify which entity issued and services your specific policy, along with the current A.M. Best rating and service phone number, directly with the carrier, since these arrangements have changed more than once.
This guide focuses on whole life specifically: guaranteed cash values, dividends where applicable, and how a settlement offer stacks up against surrender or reduced paid-up coverage. Pine Lake Life Solutions is not affiliated with Global Atlantic, Forethought, Accordia, or KKR, and nothing here is legal, tax, or investment advice.
In This Article
- Yes, and Here Is Why the Carrier Cannot Block It
- Forethought, Accordia, Global Atlantic: Sorting Out Who Services Your Policy
- The Guaranteed Cash Value Table Is Your Baseline
- Dividends, Paid-Up Additions, and Whether Your Policy Participates
- Preneed and Final Expense Policies Are a Different Animal
- Settlement, Surrender, Reduced Paid-Up, or Keep It
- Documents and the Timeline
- Who Qualifies, and What to Do Next
- Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, and Here Is Why the Carrier Cannot Block It
In 1911 the U.S. Supreme Court decided Grigsby v. Russell, holding that a life insurance policy is transferable personal property that the owner may sell. Every life settlement in the United States rests on that decision, and it applies without regard to which company issued the contract or how many times the block has changed hands since.
Practically, the carrier appears at the end of the process. After you sign a purchase agreement and the buyer funds an independent escrow account, a change of ownership or absolute assignment form goes to the servicing company along with a beneficiary change. Once it is recorded and confirmed, escrow releases your payment. Request the current version of that form from the policyholder service number on your premium notice, and confirm the 2026 requirements, including whether notarization is required.
Forethought, Accordia, Global Atlantic: Sorting Out Who Services Your Policy
This matters more here than with most carriers, because Global Atlantic’s individual life business was largely built by acquisition rather than by writing new business under one name for decades. Forethought Life Insurance Company built its reputation in preneed and final expense products sold through funeral homes. Accordia Life and Annuity Company took on a substantial block of individual life policies originally issued by Aviva USA. Both operate under the Global Atlantic umbrella.
So the name on your original contract may not be the name on your current statement, and neither may match the name of the group that owns the business today. Do not guess. Look at your most recent premium notice or annual statement for the servicing company and phone number, call it, and ask three questions: which entity currently administers this policy, where do change-of-ownership forms go, and how do I request an in-force illustration. Get the answers in writing if you can. None of this affects your right to sell. It affects only where the paperwork lands.
The Guaranteed Cash Value Table Is Your Baseline
Whole life is the product with a printed guarantee. Inside your contract is a table of guaranteed cash values by policy year. Surrender the policy and the carrier pays that value, less any outstanding loan, and the coverage ends. That number is the floor for any decision you make. A settlement offer that does not clearly beat it is not worth signing.
What surprises people is that a high cash value does not automatically mean a high offer. A buyer is purchasing a future death benefit and paying premiums to get there. When the cash value is already large relative to the face amount, the buyer’s room to pay a premium over surrender value narrows. Market-wide, sellers have generally received in the range of 10 to 35 percent of face value, and the federal GAO study GAO-10-775 found settlements paying roughly four to eight times cash surrender value. A heavily funded whole life policy will often show a smaller multiple simply because the denominator is large.
Dividends, Paid-Up Additions, and Whether Your Policy Participates
Not all whole life is participating. Many policies issued through stock companies are nonparticipating, meaning they pay no dividends at all and the guaranteed table is the whole story. Others are participating and may credit dividends when the insurer’s experience allows, though dividends are never guaranteed. Do not assume either way, and do not rely on what an agent said years ago. Ask the servicing company to confirm in writing whether your specific contract is participating as of 2026.
If it is participating, the dividend option on file changes the arithmetic. Dividends taken in cash leave the policy unchanged. Dividends used to reduce premiums lower your outlay. Dividends left to accumulate build a separate interest-bearing balance you can usually withdraw. Dividends buying paid-up additions increase both the cash value and the total death benefit, which means the amount a buyer prices can exceed the face amount printed on your cover page. Request a current values statement that separates base coverage, paid-up additions, accumulated dividends, and any loan.
| Question | Where the Answer Lives | Why It Changes the Decision |
|---|---|---|
| Which company issued the policy | Contract cover page | Determines which entity’s forms and rules apply |
| Which company services it today | Most recent premium notice or statement | Where illustrations and ownership forms must be sent |
| Is the policy participating | Written confirmation from the servicing company | Decides whether dividends are part of the math |
| Guaranteed cash value this year | Contract value table and current statement | The floor any settlement offer must beat |
| Paid-up additions in force | Current values statement | Total death benefit may exceed the printed face amount |
| Outstanding loan balance | Servicing company payoff quote | Netted from any settlement proceeds |
Preneed and Final Expense Policies Are a Different Animal
Because of Forethought’s history in the funeral services market, a meaningful number of Global Atlantic life policies are small preneed or final expense contracts, often issued with face amounts well under $25,000 and sometimes assigned to a funeral home to fund a prearranged service. These are honest, useful products, but they are generally not settlement candidates.
The reason is size. Buyers in the secondary market underwrite each policy individually, ordering medical records and life-expectancy estimates, and the fixed cost of that work does not shrink with the death benefit. That is why the practical threshold across the market sits around $100,000 of face value. If your policy is a small preneed contract, or is already assigned to a funeral provider, a settlement is unlikely and a free review will tell you so in a day or two rather than leaving you wondering.
Settlement, Surrender, Reduced Paid-Up, or Keep It
Reduced paid-up is the option most owners never hear about. You stop paying premiums permanently and the existing cash value buys a smaller amount of fully paid coverage. Nobody hands you cash, but the bills end and your family keeps a death benefit. If the problem is the premium rather than the coverage, that is often the cleanest answer.
A settlement fits a different situation: the coverage is no longer needed and cash is, most often to pay for senior care or in a Medicaid spend-down, where cash surrender value would count as a countable asset anyway. Extended term insurance, a policy loan, and simply keeping the policy round out the list. Work through all of them before deciding. Our comparison of a life settlement versus surrendering the policy lays out the tradeoffs, and how cash surrender value works explains the floor number.
Documents and the Timeline
Send the policy cover page or specifications page first: issuing company, policy number, face amount, issue date, insured. That is enough for a free, no-obligation review. If the policy is a candidate, request a current values statement, an in-force illustration, the reduced paid-up amount available today, the loan payoff if any, and the change-of-ownership packet, all from the servicing company you confirmed earlier.
From there the process runs: application with HIPAA authorization, medical records and life-expectancy estimates, a written offer showing gross and net figures if a broker is involved, contracts and independent escrow, the recorded ownership change, then release of funds and a rescission window in most states. Plan on 60 to 120 days, with medical records the usual bottleneck. Never transfer ownership on a promise of later payment.
Who Qualifies, and What to Do Next
Buyers generally want an insured around 65 or older, or younger with meaningful health conditions, a death benefit of $100,000 or more, and a policy past its contestability period. Outstanding loans come off the proceeds. Small policies and policies that are still both needed and affordable usually should stay right where they are.
To find out where yours falls, send the policy cover page for a free policy review, or call (305) 209-7183. If you hold other Global Atlantic coverage, our guides to selling a Global Atlantic universal life policy and a Global Atlantic guaranteed universal life policy cover those designs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Global Atlantic have to approve the sale of my whole life policy?
No. The 1911 Supreme Court decision in Grigsby v. Russell established that a life insurance policy is transferable personal property. The buyer purchases the contract from you, and the servicing company simply records the change of owner and beneficiary once the sale closes.
My policy says Forethought but my statement says something else. Which is right?
Both can be. Global Atlantic built its life business substantially through acquisition, including Forethought and the Accordia block of policies originally issued by Aviva USA. The issuing company appears on your contract, while the servicing company appears on your current statement. Call the number on the statement and ask which entity administers the policy today.
Who owns Global Atlantic now?
Global Atlantic began within Goldman Sachs before becoming independent, and the investment firm KKR acquired a majority stake and then completed acquisition of the remainder of the business in 2024. Ownership at the parent level does not change your contract rights. Verify the current corporate structure with the company if it matters to you.
Will a settlement pay more than my cash surrender value?
That is the only reason to consider one. The GAO study GAO-10-775 found settlements paying roughly four to eight times surrender value across the market, with proceeds generally in the range of 10 to 35 percent of face value. A heavily funded whole life policy with a high surrender value often draws a smaller multiple.
Can I sell a small final expense or preneed policy?
Usually not. Buyers underwrite each policy individually, and the cost of that work does not shrink with the death benefit, so the practical threshold sits around $100,000 of face value. Policies already assigned to a funeral home to fund a prearranged service are also generally unavailable to sell.
Does my policy pay dividends?
It depends on whether the contract is participating, and many whole life policies from stock companies are not. Ask the servicing company to confirm in writing rather than assuming. If it is participating, also ask which dividend option is on file, because paid-up additions increase both cash value and total death benefit.
What is reduced paid-up coverage?
It uses your existing cash value as a single premium to buy a smaller amount of fully paid insurance. Premiums stop permanently and a death benefit remains, just a smaller one. It is often the better choice when the problem is the premium rather than the coverage itself.
What do I send to start a review?
Only the policy cover page, showing the insurer, policy number, face amount, and issue date. The review is free with no obligation. You can also call (305) 209-7183 to talk through your situation first.
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Related Reading
- Life Settlement Vs Surrender
- Cash Surrender Value Life Insurance
- What Policies Qualify For Life Settlement
- How It Works Policy Options
- Sell My Global Atlantic Universal Life Policy
- Sell My Global Atlantic Guaranteed Universal Policy
Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase life insurance policies and does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice. Information provided is for educational purposes only. Eligibility for any option, including life settlements, is not guaranteed and depends on individual circumstances, policy terms, underwriting, and market conditions. Consult independent legal, tax, or financial professionals before making decisions regarding a life insurance policy.