Standard Funeral Cover Contact Details

There is no South African insurer trading as Standard Funeral Cover. The product people are usually looking for is the Standard Bank Flexible Funeral Plan, and knowing the correct name matters because it tells you who actually carries the risk: the plan is underwritten by Liberty Group Limited, a licensed life insurer under FSP 2409, and sold through Standard Bank Insurance Brokers under FSP 224. Standard Bank is the distributor, not the insurer.

Standard Bank funeral plan contacts

• Claims: 0860 123 999
• WhatsApp for insurance and claims: 064 570 0291
• Customer care: 0860 123 000, or +27 10 824 1515 from outside South Africa
• Funeral claim documents: funeralclaimsdocuments@standardbank.co.za

What the plan covers

• Cover of up to R100 000 per adult life assured
• Family members may be added to the same policy
• A return of 10 percent of premiums paid, every five years, while the policy is in force

The waiting periods, which decide most claims

Waiting periods are the single most common reason a funeral claim is turned down, and they are set out by Standard Bank itself:

• Accidental death: no waiting period, cover applies immediately
• All other benefits: a six-month waiting period from the start of cover
• Suicide: a twelve-month waiting period

If a claim falls inside a waiting period the premiums are usually refunded rather than the cover paid. If you are replacing an existing funeral policy, do not cancel the old one until the new waiting period has run, or you will be uncovered for six months in between. That gap catches a great many families.

Claiming

Phone 0860 123 999 or use the WhatsApp line to open the claim, then send the documents to the claims mailbox. Expect to need the death certificate, the DHA-1663 notification of death, the deceased identity document, the claimant identity document, the policy number and proof of the bank account the payout must go to. Funeral claims are meant to be settled quickly, within days rather than weeks, so ask for the turnaround commitment when you open the claim and chase against it.

Checking who is selling to you

• Standard Bank Insurance Brokers is FSP 224 and the underwriter Liberty Group Limited is FSP 2409; anyone selling this plan should be able to give both
• Standard Bank does not sell funeral cover through people who call and ask for your banking details or a one-time password
• A funeral policy sold by an undertaker or a burial society is a different product, and may not be underwritten by a licensed insurer at all

If a claim is refused

• Ask for the refusal in writing naming the exact clause relied on, then use the internal dispute process on 0860 123 999
• For an unresolved life or funeral claim, the National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa takes complaints on 0860 800 900
• For the advice given when the policy was sold, the FAIS Ombud is the correct office instead