Endowment policies have been around for a long time. They are governed by the Insurance Act. Endowments are available for recurring premium as well as lump-sum premium investments. Endowment has fallen a little out of favour in recent years, mainly because of a lack of transparency in terms of cost and performance when compared with investments like unit trusts.

Endowments are essentially pure investment policies, although life and disability benefits can be added if required. These funds are invested in an underlying portfolio, and a wide range of portfolio options which differ from company to company are available.

This type of insurance applies only to businesses, and has no place in the domestic market at all.
It is very simple: do you ever use cars registered in your private names, or do your employees ever use their private cars, for company business?
If so, your company should have the above cover, and do premium measured only in hundreds of rands a year, it is well worth the investment.

If you are not in business on your own, but have a partner (either a legal partner or a partner in a broader sense who owns, say, half of the shares in your business), then you need to take note of buy and sell insurance.

a re increasingly used as underlying investments or building blocks in a wide range of investment products. Over the last ten years unit trusts have become the investment vehicles of choice for a wide range of retirement products, including retirement annuities, preservation funds, and living annuities. They are also widely used as underlying choices in the insurance industry.

Under a provident fund, the full amount of the benefit available at retirement may be taken as a lump sum cash payment, irrespective of whether the benefit is calculated on a defined benefit or a defined contribution basis.

Pension - a fixed sum paid regularly to a person, typically, given following a retirement from service.Pensions should not be confused with severance pay the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum

Employers can assist employees in saving for retirement, therefore having a positive influence on their long-term economic prospects.

Not only does this appeal to the desire to care for employees, but by improving the financial wellbeing of your employees, you are able to keep qualified staff and increase productivity.

Key Man Insurance can cover the value of the people in your business if their death or disability could cause great loss or even the closure of the business

reinvest retirement capital once you’ve left a pension or provident fund. Whether due to resignation, retrenchment or the closing of an occupational retirement fund, you can preserve your savings for their original purpose without incurring tax.