Tag: insurance policy

An insurance concept that often gets misunderstood, despite underpinning every policy, is insurable interest. While it might sound technical, the principle is quite simple. Simply put, you can only insure something if its loss or damage would cause you a financial setback. If you do not stand to suffer financial loss directly from the loss of or damage to an insured item, insurance will not cover that loss.

After a little more than a year into my role as Chief Marketing Officer, I have started to think very differently about death and the business of death. Coming from an FMCG environment, I found the transition to the services sector, specifically funeral and life insurance, significant. However, I also discovered that there are similarities between the two sectors.

The world in which we grew up is changing. The weather is no longer as predictable as we remember. We can no longer set our clocks by an afternoon Highveld storm. We also cannot reliably mark the transition of the seasons. Climate change is real. It brings unpredictable weather patterns and uncertainties that extend beyond the environment and into our financial security.

Insurance disputes and appraisals often arise when determining the value of damaged or destroyed property under policy limits. Disputes often arise between insurers and policyholders regarding the value of insured property. Some of these disputes are resolved with little difficulty, as the value can be relatively easily established.

Working with chemicals presents inherent risks. These risks must be carefully managed to ensure employee safety and chemical safety measures. Additionally, businesses need adequate insurance coverage to mitigate potential financial losses.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is arguably one of the most prolific buzzwords of the past decade. Since the advent of ChatGPT in late 2022, AI has become a hotly debated topic beyond the boardroom, reaching casual dinners and braai's. True, AI presents potentially both humanity’s greatest achievement and unknowable prodigious risk. True, AI presents potentially both humanity’s greatest achievement and unknowable prodigious risk.

Cybercrime remains rife, despite the efforts to combat it. In a recent court case, the court reaffirmed the legal position as to who bears responsibility for payment where a third-party accesses an email system, changes the banking details, and payment is made into an incorrect account.

Policyholders and insurers alike should take note of a judgement recently handed down in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Johannesburg. The case concerned a claim for specific performance in terms of a life insurance policy. The policyholder lodged a claim with his insurer through its authorised agent on or about 27 September 2017.

In most cases, the regular driver of a vehicle is also the holder of the car insurance policy and the person who will be covered in the event of a claim. There are, however, instances where a friend or family member may be the one taking it for a spin.

There is no longer space to think of the accountant in the traditional sense. The role, responsibility and professional competence of an accountant has grown significantly in the modern era with the profession branching into blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the likes, with limitless reach across the globe by means of ever improving technology.