Stay away please

1 July 2025 To whom it may concern,

My name is Shane Marcus Luttig, I was born and breed in Boksburg, where I stay with my loving wife and children. I write to you to express my concern over yet another insurance company trying to pull wool over their customers eyes. With this letter I hope to give you a brief understanding of myself, the life I lead, and how my insurer (Capital Legacy) has done anything in their power to prevent me from claiming what they are obligated to pay me. I am not saying that this is the greatest David and Goliath story but I remain steadfast in the face of adversity and with my story I hope to expose the giant which is Capital Legacy and their insurance ****. Like many people my employment history is a tapestry woven from a variety of jobs across multiple different industries, from working in a restaurant to installing gutters. However, this issue revolves around a different job.

In 2015 I had been stuck in a period of unemployment and rough years, when I was lucky enough to apply and get a job at my local municipality, Ekurhuleni, in the Road Markings and Signs department. My job revolved around cleaning the roads before and after a job; painting the road markings on the road; and digging holes for and planting street signs. So, as you can believe it was a very physically tolling job, yet I was never one to shy away from the hard work. I worked there for 9 years (2***) until I was medically boarded due to health issues, namely, lymphedema and an enlarged heart which limited my ability to do the physical labour laid out in the scope of my employment contract.

In November of 2021 I received a phone call from a telemarketer/broker looking to provide me with life insurance, he worked for Capital Legacy. Even though I had been with 1Life insurance since 2015 I was open to listening to the broker as he was extremely polite and friendly, so at the end of the call I had decided to make the move over to Capital Legacy mainly due to this broker and his ability to make me feel like family, and his regularly checkups made me feel like my investment was in good hands. Fast-forward to the end of 2023 and my broker’s regular checkups had dried up. So, in an effort to enquire about my broker I called Capital Legacy only to find out that my broker no longer works there and in fact that he was disbarred by the company. To this day the company has not assigned a new broker to me and my old broker’s name is still on my policy, so with no one to directly speak to I struggled to find out information about my policy. For instance, when I was medically boarded in 2024 my family was struggling and I vaguely remembered my old broker mention a disability payout. So, I called Capital Legacy to enquire if this was in fact the case and they insured me that I in fact DID NOT have a disability claim available. However, after my recent communications with Capital Legacy I have been left to question the honesty and integrity of the company.

In a recent effort to get in contact with my broker I finally managed to get through to him, this communication came after Capital Legacy sent me a letter confirming the cancellation of my policy, in which he gave me permission to share our conversation with any 3rd party. Once I gave him a breakdown of my situation, he said that it came to no surprise as I am not the first one to struggle claiming from the insurer. He stated that he cannot remember every detail from our call back in November of 2021, however he does remember that I did not answer ‘no’ to every question as the insurer claims. He remembers this because he still had to place a 2-month loading period on my policy due to me answering ‘yes’ to a couple of the health questions. This means that the benefits of my policy only came into effect January 2022 because of my health issues. This date is confirmed by Capital Legacy’s cancellation letter where it states “Policy commencement date: 1 January 2022”. The next question I asked was whether he had the call recording like the insurer claims, he said “no, I handed over all case files as well as the work laptop back to the company when he left,” as was the company policy. The final question I asked was, why was he disbarred from Capital Legacy? He said “he is unsure of the full story but that should ask the insurer this question and they would be obliged to answer it.” However, Capital Legacy refuse to provide me with the reason for his disbarring. It is the same actions from them when I try to get the recording.

So, after a year of struggles and not hearing from Capital Legacy since my last communication I contacted them again in the beginning of 2025, to update my last will and testament, requesting my policy and will to read over everything. After going back and forth with them for a few weeks they finally sent through the documents I requested. To my surprise I read that I did in fact have a disability fund I could have claimed from, so understandably I was quite upset as my family had been struggling over these last few years and it felt that they deliberately **** to me, extending my family’s struggles. Since I made this discovery and I made Capital Legacy aware it felt like my case went on a downward spiral with Capital Legacy and their staff being at the center of this rotten insurance ****.

Allow me to give you a basic timeline of how I found out I had a claim to Capital Legacy just out right canceling my policy: April 2025 – I found out I have a disability claim and I begin the process with someone in the claims department of Capital Legacy (his name is Matthew). He emailed me forms that had to be filled in and told me what else is required from my doctors for the claim. He then claims that he needs to speak to my GP about my sleep apnea (a condition that played no role in me being medically boarded). It seemed like from the get go that they were just grasping at straws. May 2025 – the consultant from the claims department stated that they had to send my claim to the underwriters for review claiming that I had not answered a question about my sleep apnea truthfully, and said I can expect an outcome in 5-7 working days. This was already raising red flags for me as I have had this policy for +-4 years and according to the Policyholder Protection Rules, their claims fall outside of the incontestability period, in which they were supposed to thoroughly investigate my policy within the first 2 years to ensure that everything was truthful. This would have all been obvious with a simple look into my medical records. It is also important to noted that I do not lie about my health issues as I am aware that it could cause problems for my family if I passed away. During this time, I was requesting the voice recording of my call as it is the only thing that can prove what was really said during the call, but I am only met with excuses from Capital Legacy. June 2025 – I request my signed policy because they refuse to give me the recording and I need to check what the policy states. Firstly, they sent me a policy in which every single question was marked ‘no’, it was not signed, and it said “signed on 22nd April 2025”. So why would it state that date if I took my policy out in 2021? After I pointed out these facts, I requested the policy that was actually signed and had my right answers, to which they sent me one with everything still marked ‘no’ and with a signature that does not resemble mine, the signature also differs significantly to my actual signature on my will. The reason I contested the signature is because all the answers were not what I answered during the call, so I would not sign a document with incorrect information. The same month they referred my case to the claims manager (called Vusi) who after 3 days did not mention the outcome of my claim but rather just instantly cancelled my policy due to me claiming that the signature on my policy does not resemble my signature. He stated that they would just refund my contribution for the past 4 years. To me this just sounds like they are trying to cut their losses, because if there was an issue from my side why wouldn’t they just decline my claim and cancel my policy without a refund?

On the 27th of June 2025 I received a letter in which the insurer outlines the reasons why my claim was declined and ultimately why it was cancelled. Allow me to walk through their letter with you and discuss how they claim that they are just adhering to their policy terms and conditions yet they do not follow their own guidelines as well as the guidelines set out in the legislative system of South Africa. In the letter I received from them they state that the main reasons why the policy was cancelled was due to me lying about my health issues (sleep apnoea, cellulitis, lymphedema, and an enlarged heart) and the fact that I claimed I did not sign my policy but rather accepted it over the phone. Allow me to provide a timeline of my health issues, proving that I was not even diagnosed with these conditions until after I received my policy (expect for my sleep apnoea to which I am adamant that I was not even asked this question). As for the signature I will provide facts within South African law that a signature is not need to form a valid contract.

Allow me to walk through the timeline of my diagnosis: November 2021 – I am admitted into hospital with pain in my legs, where they tell me that it is cellulitis. However, they do not tell me that this condition is chronic or even how serious it is. All I am told at the hospital is that cellulitis is an infection of the soft tissue. I take it as an isolated event and nothing more. November 2021 – I receive a call from a Capital Legacy broker looking to sell me life insurance, I accept and have been paying the premiums since. However, I am fully confident that the broker did not ask any questions about sleep apnoea but rather if I had asthma or tuberculosis, to which I answered ‘no’. This is where the insurer contravenes South African legislation as they have not kept the recording of the call as is required by Rule 16 of the Policyholders Protection Rules where it states that all recordings should be safely kept and easily accessible. This is a vital piece of evidence that they have simply discarded to make their case more attractive. January 2022 – I am referred to a vascular surgeon (Dr Kowalezyk) where I learn what lymphedema is (I have not been diagnosed with it yet) and how serious cellulitis is. March 2022 – I go see Dr Kowalezyk where he officially diagnosed me with lymphedema August 2023 – I am referred to another specialist, for my heart, in the form of Dr Rost. Where he diagnosed me with an enlarged heart. In their letter of cancellation, they expressly name these issues as a reason for the voiding of my policy yet I was not even diagnosed with any of them yet. How must I be expected to foresee what issues I will develop over the years and if Capital Legacy expect their clients to be clairvoyant, they should state this during their calls to you. In their letter they only list 2 of the 4 doctors who dealt with my health issues. How can they make a well-informed decision if they do not use all the information given to them?

They claim that the signature on my policy differs from my actual signature and therefore there was not a valid contract. However, in South Africa a contract does not have to be written to be enforceable. They tacitly created a contract between the two of us once I verbally accepted on the phone and once, they started deducting premiums from my account. Why else would I just let them take my money if we did not agree on terms? This has legislative support in the form of the Consumers Protection Act that recognises tacit agreements as a valid contract as long as there is a supplier-consumer relationship (i.e. accepting my monthly payments). It also finds support within s22 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act which states a contract is concluded once acceptance of the offer is received by the supplier, even if it is done so electronically.

Capital Legacy also contravene their own terms and conditions by not having the recording as well as not realising the contract we have. As their terms and conditions state that “your plan shall be subject to the laws of the Republic of South Africa.” I feel like them and their employees do not act in good faith of the laws of South Africa, as they throw these values to the floor in order to protect themselves.

I am not burdened with wealth so I do not have the funds to fight this in a legal court but I am determined to see justice served, so I will not just roll over and let them have their way. I also know that often the court of public opinion has more sway than some legal courts. That is my goal to make sure people know what they are getting into by signing up with Capital Legacy. Yet while I write this letter I am still stuck here with a few questions: Why refund me my contributions if I was the dishonest one? Why are my premiums so high if on the policy they sent me I stated I have no health issues? According to them I stated I am perfectly healthy yet my premiums show that I have chronic health issues. Where are the recordings that can prove who is at fault? I have email proof that they in fact do not even have the recording. Why was my broker disbarred by their company? Was he dishonest with his clients? Why are they only concerned about my sleep apnoea and not any of my other chronic health issues if I marked all these questions as ‘no’ on the application? If there was no contract, why have they been debiting premiums off my account for the last several years? What am I supposed to do now that I cannot get a policy at another company because they have basically blacklisted me by cancelling my policy? Why do Capital Legacy believe their terms and conditions are above the legal system of South Africa? How many other people and their families have suffered at the hands of Capital Legacy and their insurance ****?

So, I am asking you to please help me spread the word and help bring attention to what Capital Legacy have been doing because I am certain that I am not they only person that has struggled with them. What started out as a claim to help ease the struggles of my family has now turned into a crusade for justice.

Kind regards Shane Luttig *** ***