Warning to Bonitas members - don't miss payments!

Just a warning to members of the Bonitas medical aid scheme not to miss any premium payments! If your debit order fails you will immediately lose all cover until you make the missed payment! Yes, that's right - there's no grace period! This alarming situation was brought to my attention recently when, due to an oversight, the balance in my 91 year old mother's bank account dropped R100 below where it should have been and the Bonitas debit order bounced. I noticed this after a couple of days and sent Bonitas an email asking for their banking details. I then went off for a 4 day break, leaving my mother with a carer. I had no idea that mum effectively had no medical aid while I was away, and I shudder to think what would have happened if mum had required sudden hospitalisation during this period - she would doubtless have ended up in a government hospital, which is a worrying thought. I have no idea why Bonitas don't offer a grace period of a week at least, but the moral of the story is make sure you don't miss any payments!