1Life Wills and Estate Plan
Today, 1Life Insurance is proud to launch a new and innovative life insurance product that focuses on ensuring that both direct clients, as well as clients within their broker network through 1Life Vantage, are better able to preserve, and transfer, their client’s generational wealth.
The 1Life Wills and Estate Plan is cover specifically designed to address challenges traditionally associated with estate planning, executorship and Wills with a critical focus on addressing an estate shortfall to provide liquidity in the estate.
“There is no doubt that today not only is winding up an estate a tiresome exercise, but so too can it be a long and expensive one, with lots of red tape – leaving clients’ families in the lurch while dealing with a loved one’s passing. For as long as we have been around, we have aimed to lighten the financial burden at this time, by ensuring our clients are paid out timely and gain benefits from their life cover however, today, we are taking this one step further by easing the pressures and costs associated with estate finalisation,” says Kobus Wentzel, Head of Distribution at 1Life Insurance.
The 1Life Wills and Estate Plan is an innovative life insurance policy that includes critical financial aid for adviser’s clients from an estate point of view, including an estate shortfall lump sum of up to R10 million which is paid out to the Estate, a liquidity benefit up to R50 000 which is paid out to beneficiaries within 48 hours of a successful claim and a monthly income paid to the chosen beneficiary for 6-months. This is executed in partnership with Fairheads – one of South Africa’s leading fiduciary experts.
“While the immediate benefit for the client is massive, we have also included a free additional Executor benefit, which provides clients with significant discounts on executor & conveyancing fees – over and above the immediate pay outs – which aims to lessen the financial burden for families when a loved one dies, as well as ensure further liquidity in the estate,” says Wentzel.
Further to these benefits, these clients also have access to 1Life Will – a new, online will drafting service (powered by Cliqtech) which is included at no extra cost, can be drafted in 15 minutes, and is supported by a team of fiduciary experts that work with the adviser and their client to draw up a valid, signed, and retrievable Will as well as assist with Estate Planning. The signed Will is safely and securely stored in a fireproof facility to ensure validity and security thereof making it easier, faster, simpler and more tailored than other offerings on the market.
Advisers will have one view of client’s assets and life stages, for as long as the Will is kept with 1Life Insurance, giving them sight of a client’s financial circumstances, enabling better financial planning, upsell and cross-sell opportunities, without having to meet face to face with the client. It also offers straight through processing through a digitally enabled, quick and effective platform – from Wills to estate planning and digital acceptance.
“With South Africa’s GDP growth for the next two years forecasted downward at a rate of 0.5% for 2023 and 0.9% in 2024, consumers are in for a tough time and planning for future wealth – and very importantly – protecting one’s wealth is more crucial than ever. In fact, our recent generational wealth survey indicated that 92% of South Africans are tackling their finances head on, despite economic instability, and so while this is refreshing news, there is still little focus on estate planning where Wills alone are at a mere 36%. The impact of this on estate planning is massive and tackling this today is a crucial first step in helping clients preserve and transfer their wealth,” continues Wentzel.
“We believe that by offering advisers and clients a product that takes this important component of wealth transfer into account, we are better able to encourage wealth perseveration and growth for a more sustainable financial future in South Africa,” concludes Wentzel.