Funeral plans worth banking on

ATM

A South African bank is offering funeral plans through nearly 6,700 ATMs.

FNB Life, the insurance and administrator arm of First National Bank (FNB), which as the name suggests is Africa’s oldest bank, says that this innovation is part of its efforts to improve convenient access while simplifying the take up process. It currently sells 400 funeral plans a month this way.

Customers visit the ATM and, instead of withdrawing money, take out funeral insurance cover from R10,000 to R60,000 (£468 to £2,814). The process takes around a minute and proof of purchase is printed from the ATM, with the plan effective immediately.

Lee Bromfield, FNB Life Chief Executive Officer, says making funeral plans available via this channel is a logical step as ATMs already enable citizens to access a number of services.

He explained: “ATMs have become multi-purpose devices and one of the most used channels in rural communities and townships. This development offers consumers in those and other areas an opportunity to use this channel to get funeral plans from a provider they can trust, thus avoiding possible debt associated with paying for a funeral.

“Under the current economic conditions where cost is a major factor, consumers need cost-effective and efficient channels to get the services they need. Consequently, allowing customers to take up funeral plans whenever and wherever they want empowers them to make the right decision.”

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