Two insurance giants dominate Sassa funeral deductions

Two South African insurance giants collect 87% of all funeral policy premiums deducted directly from pension and disability grants paid out by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa). Illustration: Lisa Nelson

Two South African insurance giants collect 87% of all funeral policy premiums deducted directly from pension and disability grants paid out by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa).

Clientèle Life and Sanlam, along with their subsidiaries, collect R143.33-million in monthly policy deductions from almost one million beneficiaries. In total, premiums of just over R165-million are deducted every month from 1.11-million Sassa beneficiaries.

Statistics about funeral policy deductions were made available in March by Minister of Social Development Nokuzola Sisisi Tolashe, in response to a parliamentary question from Bridget Masango (DA).

GroundUp and Limpopo Mirror reported in September last year that hundreds of pensioners claimed that money was being deducted from their Sassa old-age grants without their permission. The deductions of between R100 and R280 a month were for funeral policies.

When Sassa was supplied with six examples and asked about the deductions, it confirmed that all the affected beneficiaries had funeral policies through either 1Life or Emerald Life.

The cases were investigated and the pensioners were all reimbursed, although the insurance companies insisted they could find no evidence of irregular conduct. The companies maintained they had proof that pensioners had agreed to the deductions, but questions remained about how the transactions were concluded.

In her parliamentary question, Masango asked for a list of insurance companies that have a contract and/or agreement in place for funeral policy premiums to be deducted from social grants, in terms of the Social Assistance Act. This allows registered insurance companies to apply to have policy premiums deducted from a Sassa grant before it is paid into a beneficiary’s bank account.

The list provided by the minister includes the total number of beneficiaries and the amounts paid to each insurer. It also lists deductions against old-age pensions and permanent disability grants. There is one war veteran who receives a grant from which a policy deduction is made.

While Sassa does not regularly publish a real-time breakdown by grant type, the best available figures suggest roughly 3.5 to 4-million citizens receive old-age pensions. Approximately 1 to 1.2-million people receive disability grants from Sassa.

Only one funeral policy premium is allowed to be deducted from a grant, and this may not exceed 10% of the total payable to the beneficiary.

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Many insurers, few players

The list provided by the minister contains the names of 30 life insurers. Most of the deductions are for funeral policies taken out by pensioners.

In total, 936,243 pensioners have deductions made from their monthly grants, and the total amount is just below R140-million every month. Most of this money — R40.92-million, or 29% — goes to Emerald Life with 241,178 policyholders and an average premium of R169.67 per month. Assupol Life has 291,821 policyholders and an average premium of R135.70. 1Life Insurance takes third spot, with 166,636 policyholders.

For funeral policies sold to Sassa beneficiaries who receive disability grants, Emerald Life has 50,397 policyholders and collects monthly premiums of R9.06-million; Assupol has 44,327 policyholders and collects R5.57-million; and 1Life Insurance, with 28,384 policyholders, collects R3.72-million.

The figures can be misleading, as many of the insurance companies listed belong to the same groups after various mergers and acquisitions that have occurred in the industry.

The Clientèle cluster has grown rapidly through acquisition in recent years. It acquired 1Life Insurance in July 2024 and later that year announced that it had signed an agreement to buy Emerald Life (Pty) Ltd from its owner, André van der Westhuizen. The acquisition was approved by the Competition Tribunal in February 2025 and implemented in June 2025.

Smaller insurers, such as Lion of Africa Life Assurance, also underwrite funeral insurance policies administered by Emerald Life. This means that even though Lion of Africa Life is the licensed underwriter, Emerald Life is the administrator and distributor of those policies.

The Clientèle cluster is estimated to collect just over half of all premiums, either directly or through its various subsidiaries.

The Sanlam cluster is also diverse and includes Assupol and Safrican Insurance. Sanlam completed the acquisition of Assupol in October 2024, integrating it into its retail mass business in South Africa.

Assupol Life Limited, Assupol Micro Limited, Safrican Insurance Company Ltd and Sanlam Developing Markets Ltd all sit under the Sanlam umbrella.

Centriq Life Insurance and its parent, Centriq Insurance Holdings Limited, are 100% owned subsidiaries of Santam Limited. Sanlam holds 62.3% of Santam’s shares, meaning Centriq Life also traces back to Sanlam.

Together, Clientèle and Sanlam collect 86.83%, or R143.33-million, in premiums from Sassa pensioners and disability grant recipients every month.

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“Robust systems”

In her questions, Masango asked the minister what systems have been put in place to ensure that grant beneficiaries are not exploited by insurance companies.

Tolashe said the funeral policy deduction environment was strictly regulated.

“Robust systems and controls have been implemented to ensure that every deduction request complies with the regulatory framework and that beneficiaries are protected from exploitation,” she said.

She said the requirements include only registered insurers (underwriters) and beneficiaries must provide biometric verification, involving facial or fingerprint matching against Department of Home Affairs data.

“A liveness check confirms the beneficiary is physically present, reducing impersonation and mandate fraud,” Tolashe said.

Tolashe also said there are continuous enhancements to the system.

“Agents implicated in mis-selling or fraudulent activity are immediately blocked across all insurers in the ecosystem,” she said. All mandates are stored in a central system that validates biometric verification, regulatory compliance, affordability and premium thresholds.

Beneficiaries can report disputes or suspected unauthorised deductions through a free SMS service, or lodge queries at Sassa offices or directly with the insurers, she said.

“Every complaint triggers an insurer-led forensic investigation. If consent is disputed or any irregularity is confirmed, the policy is cancelled, and all deductions are refunded to the beneficiary,” Tolashe said.

Repeated complaints against a specific insurer or agent can also result in the debarment of that company or agent.

Masango also asked whether Sassa has taken any action in the past five years against insurers found guilty of mis-selling and/or requesting deductions without permission from the grant beneficiary.

“No. In terms of law, Sassa can only act if any of the companies flout the provisions of the Social Assistance Act and its Regulations, including the regulations of the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA),” Tolashe answered.

Published with the Limpopo Mirror

This article was originally published on GroundUp.

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