You may recall me looking into this topic a couple of years back - in the hope of helping GHASA members.
Unbeknown to me, if you want alternative quotes, the big brokers ask, or rather have the underwriters who they work with, to make sure that the quotes are not materially changed if being called for by an alternate broker.
So the result is... less negotiating power as the consumer.
The real eye opener happened to a friend of mine with a game lodge in the Eastern Cape that had been insured with SATIB since he purchased the property three years ago. Before that, the property was insured by SATIB for 20 years.
Anyway, in December 2022, the lodge burned down and to date, there has yet be a payout.
Now, Kikuyu deals with SATIB, which is supposed to be, and essentially is, the broker taking the money each month and their percentage of the premium. I would think they have a duty to act on behalf of both parties.
In January 2023, GHASA met with SATIB to discuss the process of payout.
Well, the underwriter, Santam, refuses to pay, based on a bunch of details they say were not complied with. SATIB is now the messenger, with the news, washing their hands of it.
Aside from the fact above, SATIB continues to deduct the full monthly fee for the next eight months, even though the lodge is completely burnt to the ground! I kid you not.
Kikuyu has to give formal notice, "Hey, you're taking our money for a lodge that is not there!"
They (SATIB) are yet to show when they came to the property to say, as the broker, " This is what you need to fix or attend to in order to remain covered," something that is the crux of this message this month.
They are but one brokerage, and a large one, focused on the tourism sector. I told their director, back on the 18th of July, that I would be bringing this to the attention of the GHASA industry. Well, he has yet to even call me to discuss this matter. And by the 5th of August, he was still looking into the matter.
I said to him, "This is called playing for time."
Clearly it is an industry that has its customers by the proverbial you know what, and all I can say as advice for this windy, cold month of August is:
Call your broker, insist they visit your property and give you a letter stating clearly that they have checked your property, and it is all 100% good to be insured. That way, I believe at least you can hold the broker accountable and they will then be on the line.
I am not sure how things are going to pan out with this matter, but I can't see how, after 23 years of paying R20k a month to a broker, in this case, SATIB can simply exonerate themselves.
Maybe I am wrong.
I wanted to warn you, the property owners, to check up on your insurance in order to hopefully avoid a similar issue. I will keep you posted on how this matter pans out. Maybe the lodge owner was completely wrong and has no leg to stand on... and it will for sure be a lesson for us all who have insurance.
Regards,
Richard Lendrum & the GHASA team
