Frequently Asked Questions

What are unclaimed benefits?

An "unclaimed" benefit, as defined by legislation, is a benefit that has not been paid to or claimed by a member within 24 months from the date it became due for payment or claiming. These benefits are due to members of a pension or provident fund, or a possible beneficiary of a member who belonged to such a fund and who did not claim their benefit when their employment ended."Unclaimed Benefits" is a widespread issue in the retirement fund industry across South Africa. Industry statistics currently place the value around R47bn with approximately 4.8 million unclaimed members.

Why do unclaimed benefits exist?

Unclaimed Benefits from pension funds exist for a number of reasons, from member and beneficiary details not being updated, to fund members not informing their dependents about these benefits.

• Fund members do not provide the fund with updated contact details for themselves and their beneficiaries.
• Employers do not provide funds/administrators with comprehensive details of members of the fund.
• Many employers and/or funds don't provide members with sufficient fund information, informing them of entitlement to withdraw benefits if they resign, are dismissed or retrenched from their employment, and how to claim a benefit when it accrues.
• Poor administration and record keeping by funds/administrators.
• Insufficient mechanisms to enable foreigners, leaving the country shortly after the expiry of their work permits, to claim their benefits from their home countries and get paid in those countries.
• Fund members do not inform their dependents that, if they die in service, there may be benefits payable by their funds and which institution to contact.
• Boards of funds do not take all reasonable steps to trace and pay those entitled to the Unclaimed Benefits

Who has a claim to these benefits?

Members must choose a beneficiary with a claim to the insurance when they open policies. Any documented descendant of the insurance owner has a claim to the policy proceeds in the event that this beneficiary has passed away or one was not chosen.

If your grandmother or parent had the insurance, there is a chance that you might have a claim to the money they left.

What does the iLifa Bot do?

We can compare your information to numerous databases of unclaimed benefits using the WhatsApp-based iLifa Bot. These are the records of individuals and beneficiaries who have unclaimed benefits that insurers and provident fund managers have.

Why do we need ID numbers?

The databases we search are based on ID numbers and contain the beneficiaries' and/or the funds' principal owners' ID numbers. Giving both of these increases your likelihood of finding a match.

What if I don't have my relative's ID number?

We are collaborating with the various databases to expand the searchable fields. Please enter their birthdate and names exactly as they appear on their ID (or to the best of your knowledge) if you don't currently have their ID number.