South Africans are not only dying. They are survivors of cancer, stroke, disability, mental health conditions and long-term loss, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for families to afford the financial costs of living through these events.
This is the thread running through the latest claims figures from Liberty, Momentum Life Insurance and the Professional Provident Society (PPS), which together paid out almost R24 billion in life-risk and related claims in 2025.
These figures present a grim X-ray of the country's health and household finances. Death cover remains the biggest payout category for life insurers, but an even starker story is the rising costs of illness while people are still alive, still working, still paying off loans, still paying school fees and still hoping to keep the domestic engine running.
Liberty paid out R12.63 billion in claims in 2025, including R7.79 billion to 27,976 retail customers and their beneficiaries through its Lifestyle Protector product range. Retail payments each working day amounted to approximately R31 million. Its corporate benefits business paid out an additional R2.6 billion.
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Momentum Life Insurance paid out R6.88 billion in claims in 2025, of which R5.92 billion was paid out through its Myriad product range. This means that approximately R26.3 million is paid out each working day.
The PPS, which caters to graduated professionals, paid out R4.4 billion in life-risk claims, an increase of 20% in 2024. The PPS processed 23,016 claims, equivalent to approximately 92 claims a day, with approximately R17.6 million paid out daily to members and beneficiaries.
The lesson here is that life…