After waiting
for more than 48 hours for a funeral policy payout, a desperate Thandaza
Mtshali did the only thing she thought would make Old Mutual pay out a funeral
policy for her uncle's funeral - she took his body to their office.
Mtshali and her
aunt, Ntombenhle Mhlongo, were captured in a video that has since gone viral,
dropping off Sifiso Mtshali's body at an Old Mutual branch in KwaDukuza, north
of Durban, on Friday.
Mtshali told TimesLIVE
on Wednesday that her uncle died after a long-term illness, on Thursday,
November 7. She put in a claim with the financial services company on Monday,
November 11.
“I put through
a claim on the Monday and they told me that it was already after 1pm and that
they would process my claim only the next day, and I understood. They said I
would have the money after 48 hours,” she said.
Mtshali said
that on the Tuesday [November 12] she received an SMS, seen by TimesLIVE,
saying there would be a delay in the payout and that further assessments needed
to be done. There was no explanation for this.
“They have
never till this day explained what caused the delay. They said all my documents
were in order,” she said.
She claimed
that when she asked why the claim had been delayed on Thursday, an employee
told them to borrow money to pay for the funeral, because their claim was still
being assessed. This frustrated and angered the family.
“I saw it fit
to take the body to them while they were doing their assessment, because that
could have taken months. I saw it best for them to figure out where they put
the body, as long as they kept it safe and it didn't rot,” said Mtshali.
“I am unemployed
and I don't have any other money. We are not a rich family, we are struggling.
The money I paid was from my children's grant. I did not want the embarrassment
of an undignified funeral just because we are poor. I want to give my family
dignified funerals and they [Old Mutual] failed me,” she said.
After arranging
with a local mortuary, Mtshali and Mhlongo took the body to the Old Mutual
offices. She said after speaking to an employee, they received payment in less
than an hour and were able to bury Sifiso on Sunday.
The banking and
insurance group came under fire on Tuesday when the video was circulated on
social media. Sowetan
Thandaza Mtshali was able to burry her uncle Sifiso Mtshali on Sunday after the incident with #oldmutual last week Friday @TimesLIVE @SundayTimesZA @yasantha— Lwandile Bhengu (@Lwandi_N) November 20, 2019
(Vid by: Dana Osborn) pic.twitter.com/ki5KU4xo2s
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