Frequently asked questions

Visit any Demerara Mutual office, speak to an agent, or request a callback and an agent will contact you. Each office's phone number is on the Offices page.

Some plans require a medical examination, usually when the sum insured is high or you have an existing health condition. Your agent will tell you before you apply.

Whole-of-life plans offer waiver of premium, accidental death and dismemberment, critical illness and payor benefit riders. Term plans offer waiver of premium and accidental death and dismemberment. A rider adds to the premium and is chosen when you apply.

Term and endowment plans start at GYD 1,000,000. Whole-of-life plans start at GYD 500,000, or XCD 50,000 in the Eastern Caribbean. The Guaranteed Insurance Protection funeral plan starts at GYD 400,000 or XCD 30,000.

Yes. Premiums are set separately for smokers and non-smokers, and by sex and age at the start of the policy. Your smoking status is asked on the application.

The sum insured doubles at the start of the policy year after the child turns 21 and triples after 35. The premium is guaranteed at the outset and is adjusted only at those two step-ups, based on the child's age at that point and the new sum insured.

A term life policy whose cover falls each year in line with the loan balance. If the borrower dies during the term, the payout clears what is still owed. Terms run from 10 to 25 years in Guyana, with a 30-year term also sold in the Eastern Caribbean, to match the mortgage.

Third-party cover pays for injury or damage you cause to other people and their property, and is the minimum the law requires. Comprehensive cover also pays for damage to your own vehicle. The premium depends on the vehicle, its use and the drivers.

One policy that covers all the members of a group, such as the staff of an employer or the borrowers of a credit union. The employer or lender holds the policy, members are enrolled on a form, and cover is priced on the group rather than on each person.

Take the completed claim form, identification and the supporting documents for that claim type to a Demerara Mutual office, or email them to your branch. We confirm receipt and tell you if anything is missing.

Complete the health, dental or vision claim form, attach your receipts and the physician's statement where the form asks for one, and submit it at your office. We confirm receipt and tell you if anything is missing.

Complete the accident report form and the motor claim form, and bring them to the office with your licence, the vehicle registration and any police report. Do this as soon as you can after the accident.

Your agent can give you the forms, help you complete them and take the documents to the office. Their contact details are on your policy documents. The claim itself is still made in the name of the person entitled to the money.

It depends on the claim type and on the documents arriving complete. The office confirms receipt and tells you if anything is missing, which is the most common cause of delay.

The person entitled to receive the money: the named beneficiary, the executor or administrator if the policy is payable to the estate, or the assignee if the policy was assigned. An executor or administrator also supplies the certificate of their appointment, and an assignee produces the original assignment.

Probate of the will or letters of administration, together with the schedule of assets and liabilities, must be submitted with the claim. The claim is then made by the executor or administrator.

Yes. The claimant's statement and the identification statement are sworn before an officer authorised by law to administer oaths. The physician's statement is stamped and signed by the doctor. Any fees for obtaining the proofs are paid by the claimant.

Only when the person died by accident. If an official inquiry into the cause of death was held, a certified copy of the verdict or findings is submitted as well.

Do not discuss the terms or extent of your insurance with the other party or anyone acting for them. Pass every letter, claim, writ or summons about the accident to Demerara Fire & General immediately, unanswered, and give written notice as soon as you know of any prosecution arising from it.

Not until Demerara Fire & General gives permission. Photograph the damage as it is, and for building repairs obtain tradesmen's estimates before any work starts.

Yes. Only original documents are valid in support of a health, dental or vision claim, and once submitted they stay with the Society. Keep a photocopy of the completed form for your records.

The principal, the plan member, completes and signs the principal's statement, and the patient signs too if over 18. The employer completes the employer's statement. The attending dentist or ophthalmologist completes the treatment record on the form and gives it back to the patient with a receipt. The group administrator signs for the form when it is received.