Millions of dollars are laying unclaimed with banks, pension
funds and insurance companies. I have been informed that these companies
believe it is the responsibility of the deceased to have informed the relatives
of the policy of other benefit that the relatives are to receive. In turn, they
insist, it is the responsibility of the beneficiary to claim their monies.
Nonsense, I say! The company has been entrusted with a duty which must be kept.
In last week’s column I discussed the opportunities to be
had by entrepreneurs in the assistance of customers. Many people are not aware
of their rights and thus lose out on possible savings on products and services.
An even further disturbing business practice is the non-payment of death
benefits. After all, (a business might argue), the person has passed away and
would not be aware if their loved ones had received the money they had worked
so hard to put aside. Each and every person in Namibia has the right to find
out if they have been left an inheritance, whether it is property, money or
even a prized possession. Most of us presume that such matters will be taken
care of after our deaths – but very few actually make sure there is enough
information about our financial dealings so that our relatives or executors can
make these divisions according to our wishes.
A typical example came to light recently when a friend of
mine had a death in the family. The deceased was a pensioner and had received
their pension money less than a week before the passing. My friend was given
the responsibility of managing the financial costs of the funeral and decided
to use the account of the deceased to finalise matters. Now, unfortunately, one
of the other relatives had access to the bank card and had withdrawn the last
monies left from the pension – and even left a negative balance. Upon enquiry,
my friend was requested to provide a death certificate and proof of being the
executor before he could access the particulars of when and where the money was
withdrawn. The “missing” money was less than N$ 300.00 and my friend wondered
if it really was worth the effort. Nonetheless, he provided the paperwork to
the bank and was given the bank statement.
And this is where we come to an interesting discovery. One
of the bank employees asked my friend why he had not requested for the death
benefit of the account to be paid out. The employee explained that all bank
accounts carried life insurance - and they charged it as part of bank fees on
the account. Upon enquiry it turns out that all accounts with the bank had an
automatic death benefit of N$ 2,500.00. When I heard the story I was amazed, as
I am not even sure if my bank provides the same service. Or whether I am paying
for this service and am not aware of it?
This brings another business opportunity to light.
“Inheritance Tracing”. Not many of us have the financial knowledge, or even the
time to check whether there is money not being paid out which rightfully
belongs to us. Thus an inheritance tracing agent can assist consumers with
checking with all financial institutions such as banks, insurance companies,
etc as well as with the appropriate authorities (for example the Master of the
High Court). In addition to tracing, there is also an opportunity to provide
consumer education on matters pertaining to their last wishes. We might not
like to think about our deaths, but we must do our utmost to ensure we do not
bring more misery to our relatives through our passing.
If you have a bank account, funeral policy, shares or other
financial instruments, make sure they are all listed with a person who you can
trust. This can either be a financial advisor (insurance broker, etc.) or speak
to your bank about their services in case of your death.
