Tag: insurance

This Supreme Court of Appeal judgment, Churchill v Premier, Mpumalanga (889/2019) [2021] ZASCA 16 (4 March 2021), dealt with the case of the plaintiff who was mistreated and injured in the course of a protest by trade union members on premises where she was employed.

Risks such as heavy rain, flooding, hail, frost, drought and fire are by no means new to the South African agricultural sector, but due to the effects of climate change, they are increasing in frequency and severity. These risks are also becoming more unpredictable amid changing weather patterns, which complicates risk management efforts for farmers.

Kicking off a debate over how best to make meaningful change through investment, we explore private equity’s unmatched ability to deliver capital to the places it’s needed most. Impact investment, at its core, is the task of identifying a change the world needs and deciding how to make it happen.

Bank deposit insurance exacerbates the very crises it is assumed to alleviate. It inevitably promotes its own expansion and perforce brings calls for yet heavier regulation.

The buzzwords for the past two years have been future-forward with all-encompassing terms like 'digital transformation', 'Artificial Intelligence (AI)' and 'blockchain', but 2023 brings with it a sobering reality.

With South Africa experiencing its worst year of load shedding to date, we’re seeing a surge in demand for alternative power solutions from homeowners and businesses alike. Solar is emerging as a popular option, enabling people to reduce their reliance on Eskom at a time the utility is asking the regulator to approve a 32% increase in power tariffs.

The insurance industry is still in its infancy when it comes to most environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns. While there’s much work to be done, I believe the two are a marriage made to last for insurance to meet its mandate to make a meaningful contribution in people’s lives.

According to McKinsey, the tech-enabled insurer of the future will bear little resemblance to the institutions that exist today. Digitalisation, cloud computing, robotic process automation, and the Internet of Things are just some of the elements influencing the direction of the industry.

Maintaining customer loyalty and business profitability are ongoing challenges for insurers. Many have turned to developing more affordable products. If anything, this has highlighted the opportunities to be capitalised on by meeting customer expectations for a more tailored approach and increasing relevance in their lives by delivering more value beyond insurance products.

The office of the Ombudsman for Short Term Insurance (OSTI) released its annual report on 17 May, and what exceptionally fine news it contained.