Based on recent customer reviews, Doves Funerals and Insurance is drawing sustained criticism from grieving families across branches including Pietermaritzburg, Gezina, Innesdal and Groblersdal. Recurring complaints centre on death certificate and BI1663 documentation errors, delayed or unpaid claims, disputed invoices and unexplained charges, inconsistent debit order premiums, and confusion around the Zazu and Assupol underwriter migration. Many customers describe unanswered calls, emails and WhatsApp messages, alongside pressure for payment during mourning. One Ermelo customer praised a consistently kind and helpful staff member, but such positive feedback remains rare.
TrustIndex
2.4
NPS Score
-100
Recommended: Unlikely
Nov '25 - Oct '26
Frequently Asked Questions About Doves Funerals and Insurance
What do customers say about Doves Funerals and Insurance?
Based on recent customer reviews, Doves Funerals and Insurance is drawing sustained criticism from grieving families across branches including Pietermaritzburg, Gezina, Innesdal and Groblersdal. Recurring complaints centre on death certificate and BI1663 documentation errors, delayed or unpaid claims, disputed invoices and unexplained charges, inconsistent debit order premiums, and confusion around the Zazu and Assupol underwriter migration. Many customers describe unanswered calls, emails and WhatsApp messages, alongside pressure for payment during mourning. One Ermelo customer praised a consistently kind and helpful staff member, but such positive feedback remains rare.
Is Doves Funerals and Insurance trustworthy?
Doves Funerals and Insurance has a TrustIndex of 2.4 out of 10 on Hellopeter, based on 25 reviews in the last 12 months. They reply to 61% of negative reviews, typically within 360 hours 39 min. Hellopeter has tracked Doves Funerals and Insurance across 370 total reviews. How is the TrustIndex calculated? →
Recent reviews (25)
Used this business recently? Share your experience to help others decide.
Used this business recently? Share your experience to help others decide.
Share Your Experience1 reviews | Active since Jan 2017
Just bad
I wish i can give a 0 star. 1st of all there was a new banking number pay it the first month they got the payment continued paying them every month in to that same account got a call they havent receive a payment in 3 month last month send in the POP got a sms saying there was a error the payments was received. 2nd this month the *** that was being used from the start is apparently not right paid them the 1st @09:23 they cant locate the payment send in again bankstatment,the proof of the account,the sms where it was paid. This is the worst funeral place ever. I pay this *** every month for my aunt and every month it is a different story. Money font grow on trees
1 reviews | Active since Jan 2017
Just bad
I wish i can give a 0 star. 1st of all there was a new banking number pay it the first month they got the payment continued paying them every month in to that same account got a call they havent receive a payment in 3 month last month send in the POP got a sms saying there was a error the payments was received. 2nd this month the *** that was being used from the start is apparently not right paid them the 1st @09:23 they cant locate the payment send in again bankstatment,the proof of the account,the sms where it was paid. This is the worst funeral place ever. I pay this *** every month for my aunt and every month it is a different story. Money font grow on trees
1 reviews | Active since Nov 2023
Dissatisfied
Dear Doves and 3Sixty Life Complaints Department, I am writing to lodge a formal complaint regarding the handling of my policy and the claim relating to the deceased person on my policy. At the time the claim process was initiated, my policy was active. I was advised that Doves had changed underwriters and that I should therefore submit the claim through 3Sixty Life. I followed this instruction and submitted my claim to 3Sixty Life. However, 3Sixty Life subsequently advised me to submit the claim to Doves because of a migration process. I then contacted Doves, only to be informed that my first premium payment had not been received and that the policy would need to be reactivated. This is extremely concerning and confusing, as I was under the impression that the policy was active at the time the claim was submitted. I would therefore like a clear explanation as to how the policy could be considered lapsed or in need of reactivation if it was active when the claim arose. I was also informed that Doves had attempted to process a debit order, but that the debit order was reversed. I contacted my bank to establish what had happened, and the bank advised that there had been an error with the debit order. I also reviewed my bank statements and can confirm that sufficient funds were available in my account at the relevant time. When I subsequently visited the 3Sixty Life branch, I was given a different explanation. I was informed that the policy had in fact lapsed. This contradicts the information I had previously received and leaves me extremely concerned about how my policy was administered and why I am now being held responsible for a situation that appears to have resulted from an administrative or debit-order error. There is a further issue that remains unresolved. Several months have now passed, and the deceased person still appears on my policy. When I contacted the consultant to request that the person be removed/replaced, I was advised that this could not be done because there is a pending claim relating to that individual. I find this situation unacceptable and extremely disappointing. I have received conflicting information from Doves and 3Sixty Life regarding the status of my policy, the claim process, the debit order and the migration between the two entities. I have followed the instructions given to me, yet I am still left without a clear resolution. I therefore request the following: A detailed written explanation of the exact status of my policy at the time of the deceased person's passing and when the claim was submitted. Confirmation of whether and when the policy was allegedly lapsed, including the reason for the lapse. A detailed explanation of the attempted debit order, why it was reversed, and why the policy was not maintained when sufficient funds were available. Clarification regarding the migration between Doves and 3Sixty Life and which entity was responsible for my policy and claim at each relevant stage. A clear update on the status of my pending claim, including the reason for the delay. Confirmation of what needs to be done to resolve the issue and finalise the claim. Assistance with removing/replacing the deceased person on my policy once the claim-related restriction has been resolved. A written response addressing the contradictory information I have received from both Doves and 3Sixty Life. I would appreciate this matter being escalated to the appropriate complaints department for urgent investigation. I have been patient throughout this process, but the conflicting information and lack of resolution have caused significant frustration and inconvenience. I expect a clear, factual response supported by the relevant policy and payment records, rather than being referred back and forth between Doves and 3Sixty Life. I look forward to your urgent response and a satisfactory resolution to this matter. Kind regards
1 reviews | Active since Nov 2023
Dissatisfied
Dear Doves and 3Sixty Life Complaints Department, I am writing to lodge a formal complaint regarding the handling of my policy and the claim relating to the deceased person on my policy. At the time the claim process was initiated, my policy was active. I was advised that Doves had changed underwriters and that I should therefore submit the claim through 3Sixty Life. I followed this instruction and submitted my claim to 3Sixty Life. However, 3Sixty Life subsequently advised me to submit the claim to Doves because of a migration process. I then contacted Doves, only to be informed that my first premium payment had not been received and that the policy would need to be reactivated. This is extremely concerning and confusing, as I was under the impression that the policy was active at the time the claim was submitted. I would therefore like a clear explanation as to how the policy could be considered lapsed or in need of reactivation if it was active when the claim arose. I was also informed that Doves had attempted to process a debit order, but that the debit order was reversed. I contacted my bank to establish what had happened, and the bank advised that there had been an error with the debit order. I also reviewed my bank statements and can confirm that sufficient funds were available in my account at the relevant time. When I subsequently visited the 3Sixty Life branch, I was given a different explanation. I was informed that the policy had in fact lapsed. This contradicts the information I had previously received and leaves me extremely concerned about how my policy was administered and why I am now being held responsible for a situation that appears to have resulted from an administrative or debit-order error. There is a further issue that remains unresolved. Several months have now passed, and the deceased person still appears on my policy. When I contacted the consultant to request that the person be removed/replaced, I was advised that this could not be done because there is a pending claim relating to that individual. I find this situation unacceptable and extremely disappointing. I have received conflicting information from Doves and 3Sixty Life regarding the status of my policy, the claim process, the debit order and the migration between the two entities. I have followed the instructions given to me, yet I am still left without a clear resolution. I therefore request the following: A detailed written explanation of the exact status of my policy at the time of the deceased person's passing and when the claim was submitted. Confirmation of whether and when the policy was allegedly lapsed, including the reason for the lapse. A detailed explanation of the attempted debit order, why it was reversed, and why the policy was not maintained when sufficient funds were available. Clarification regarding the migration between Doves and 3Sixty Life and which entity was responsible for my policy and claim at each relevant stage. A clear update on the status of my pending claim, including the reason for the delay. Confirmation of what needs to be done to resolve the issue and finalise the claim. Assistance with removing/replacing the deceased person on my policy once the claim-related restriction has been resolved. A written response addressing the contradictory information I have received from both Doves and 3Sixty Life. I would appreciate this matter being escalated to the appropriate complaints department for urgent investigation. I have been patient throughout this process, but the conflicting information and lack of resolution have caused significant frustration and inconvenience. I expect a clear, factual response supported by the relevant policy and payment records, rather than being referred back and forth between Doves and 3Sixty Life. I look forward to your urgent response and a satisfactory resolution to this matter. Kind regards
1 reviews | Active since Dec 2018
Doves Claims don't want to pay
Worst experience ever when trying to claim with is company. I submitted all the documents they requested for well in time to expect the payout to pay for the funeral. They kept coming back with excuses of me having to submit a clear ID copy that show my ID. I printed my ID twice and in colour. Not sure how they expect me to enhance the ID number on a smart ID when making a copy that needs to be certified. Now the funeral has passed and they still delaying by asking for the same thing. This company is a****. They can take your debit order for over ten years, but when you have to claim they will make excuses to pay out. If you can, leave this **** company. As they will not pay you.
1 reviews | Active since Dec 2018
Doves Claims don't want to pay
Worst experience ever when trying to claim with is company. I submitted all the documents they requested for well in time to expect the payout to pay for the funeral. They kept coming back with excuses of me having to submit a clear ID copy that show my ID. I printed my ID twice and in colour. Not sure how they expect me to enhance the ID number on a smart ID when making a copy that needs to be certified. Now the funeral has passed and they still delaying by asking for the same thing. This company is a****. They can take your debit order for over ten years, but when you have to claim they will make excuses to pay out. If you can, leave this **** company. As they will not pay you.
1 reviews | Active since Aug 2026
Poor service from Doves funerals, Pietermaritzburg branch
Doves Pietermaritzburg branch handled the administration of my loved ones funeral very poorly. The Funeral consultant Mr Petros Galo is difficult to get ahold of and was unable to offer thorough assistance to the family of the deceased. Expenses and services which were not rendered were charged on a quote. For the services which were rendered have been randomly charged with amounts that they could not justify on a quote. This is not something a family in mourning should have to deal with.
1 reviews | Active since Aug 2026
Poor service from Doves funerals, Pietermaritzburg branch
Doves Pietermaritzburg branch handled the administration of my loved ones funeral very poorly. The Funeral consultant Mr Petros Galo is difficult to get ahold of and was unable to offer thorough assistance to the family of the deceased. Expenses and services which were not rendered were charged on a quote. For the services which were rendered have been randomly charged with amounts that they could not justify on a quote. This is not something a family in mourning should have to deal with.
1 reviews | Active since Oct 2013
*****
WARNING !! Doves GEZINA is no place to be dealing with funerals or families in mourning, not only is place completely run down and filthy, after I received my grandfathers BI663 (notification of death) document I found that the entire document was completely different from the original document from the hospital where he had passed away, the Dr is not known to the hospital and had nothing to do with my grandfather, the finger prints are not the same or even close to his prints, my moms finger prints on the document as the person who identified him is not hers and also not her signature the signature was made up on her behalf, this is *****, there is absolutely no reason to why they could not use the original document provided by the hospital where he had passed away and stamped by the DR who was attending to him, its shocking that this is how his passing was handled no respect or dignity, I ask myself was he dressed as we requested, do we actually have is ashes was anything handled correctly,
1 reviews | Active since Oct 2013
*****
WARNING !! Doves GEZINA is no place to be dealing with funerals or families in mourning, not only is place completely run down and filthy, after I received my grandfathers BI663 (notification of death) document I found that the entire document was completely different from the original document from the hospital where he had passed away, the Dr is not known to the hospital and had nothing to do with my grandfather, the finger prints are not the same or even close to his prints, my moms finger prints on the document as the person who identified him is not hers and also not her signature the signature was made up on her behalf, this is *****, there is absolutely no reason to why they could not use the original document provided by the hospital where he had passed away and stamped by the DR who was attending to him, its shocking that this is how his passing was handled no respect or dignity, I ask myself was he dressed as we requested, do we actually have is ashes was anything handled correctly,
1 reviews | Active since Dec 2012
NO DIGNITY WITH DOVES FUNERAL HOME
We have had a very bad and traumatic experience with Doves, who promises a dignified burial for our loved ones, my mother’s was anything but that. After being told we can arrange the funeral for the upcoming Saturday and family had booked their flights to attend, we told that unfortunately the burial could only take place the following Saturday as Maitland had reached its limit for that day and were fully booked until the following Saturday. This was something that the person we dealt with should have been aware of before she met with us. It was very strange and somewhat undignified to have the funeral in the church and then for the body to be taken back to the mortuary to be brought back for burial a week later. As for the burial - this was another problem. The burial was scheduled to start at 10:30, but by that time no-one from Doves was at the gravesite, there were no chairs or tent or table for the refreshments – which we had been promised in the all -inclusive price. No one bothered to contact us to say that they were running late. After I had made two calls to the office, the vehicles finally arrived saying the they had had car problems!!! Really?- at a time like that? Did they not have another vehicle to send? Could they not have let us know there would be a delay? One does not need these problems when one had just lost a loved one. On top of all that, the Notice of Death form completed by Doves and taken to Home Affairs to register my mother’s death, was incomplete and we were issued with an incorrect Death Certificate stating that my mother was Married when the correct status should be Widowed – Doves was fullu aware of that as they had requested a copy of my late father’s Death Certificate, so they had no excuse to not complete that section. Doves now says that they are unable to correct this – even though the error was theirs. I have been told that I will have to go to DHA and correct this myself. I would not recommend choosing Doves to take dignified care of the funeral and burial of their loved one.
1 reviews | Active since Dec 2012
NO DIGNITY WITH DOVES FUNERAL HOME
We have had a very bad and traumatic experience with Doves, who promises a dignified burial for our loved ones, my mother’s was anything but that. After being told we can arrange the funeral for the upcoming Saturday and family had booked their flights to attend, we told that unfortunately the burial could only take place the following Saturday as Maitland had reached its limit for that day and were fully booked until the following Saturday. This was something that the person we dealt with should have been aware of before she met with us. It was very strange and somewhat undignified to have the funeral in the church and then for the body to be taken back to the mortuary to be brought back for burial a week later. As for the burial - this was another problem. The burial was scheduled to start at 10:30, but by that time no-one from Doves was at the gravesite, there were no chairs or tent or table for the refreshments – which we had been promised in the all -inclusive price. No one bothered to contact us to say that they were running late. After I had made two calls to the office, the vehicles finally arrived saying the they had had car problems!!! Really?- at a time like that? Did they not have another vehicle to send? Could they not have let us know there would be a delay? One does not need these problems when one had just lost a loved one. On top of all that, the Notice of Death form completed by Doves and taken to Home Affairs to register my mother’s death, was incomplete and we were issued with an incorrect Death Certificate stating that my mother was Married when the correct status should be Widowed – Doves was fullu aware of that as they had requested a copy of my late father’s Death Certificate, so they had no excuse to not complete that section. Doves now says that they are unable to correct this – even though the error was theirs. I have been told that I will have to go to DHA and correct this myself. I would not recommend choosing Doves to take dignified care of the funeral and burial of their loved one.
1 reviews | Active since Jul 2026
Doves showed my grieving family no compassion
Doves showed my grieving family no compassion — only pressure for money I am deeply disappointed and disgusted by the way Doves has treated my family after the passing of my mother on 23 June 2026. Only around six hours after my mother passed away, a lady from Doves contacted my father and immediately started demanding money. At a time when we were in shock and trying to process our loss, there was absolutely no compassion — only pressure for payment. Since then, I have tried repeatedly to contact Doves and escalate the matter, but I have received no support from management. The only person who keeps contacting my father is the same lady, and all she seems to care about is getting money. The problem is that the amount being demanded is disputed and not money we believe we owe. To make matters worse, appointments are made and then not kept, and instead of proper communication or service, invoices are simply sent over WhatsApp. This same lady has even sent voice notes saying she does not care that we are grieving, that fuel is expensive, and that she wants her money. That level of insensitivity from a funeral company is disgraceful. A company like Doves should understand that they deal with families during some of the worst moments of their lives. Instead of support, dignity, and compassion, my family has been made to feel harassed, ignored, and disrespected. From our experience, Doves only seems interested in contacting clients when money is involved. When you need help, accountability, or management support, there is silence. I would strongly urge Doves management to investigate this matter properly, address the conduct of the staff member involved, and explain why a grieving family has been treated with such a shocking lack of humanity.
1 reviews | Active since Jul 2026
Doves showed my grieving family no compassion
Doves showed my grieving family no compassion — only pressure for money I am deeply disappointed and disgusted by the way Doves has treated my family after the passing of my mother on 23 June 2026. Only around six hours after my mother passed away, a lady from Doves contacted my father and immediately started demanding money. At a time when we were in shock and trying to process our loss, there was absolutely no compassion — only pressure for payment. Since then, I have tried repeatedly to contact Doves and escalate the matter, but I have received no support from management. The only person who keeps contacting my father is the same lady, and all she seems to care about is getting money. The problem is that the amount being demanded is disputed and not money we believe we owe. To make matters worse, appointments are made and then not kept, and instead of proper communication or service, invoices are simply sent over WhatsApp. This same lady has even sent voice notes saying she does not care that we are grieving, that fuel is expensive, and that she wants her money. That level of insensitivity from a funeral company is disgraceful. A company like Doves should understand that they deal with families during some of the worst moments of their lives. Instead of support, dignity, and compassion, my family has been made to feel harassed, ignored, and disrespected. From our experience, Doves only seems interested in contacting clients when money is involved. When you need help, accountability, or management support, there is silence. I would strongly urge Doves management to investigate this matter properly, address the conduct of the staff member involved, and explain why a grieving family has been treated with such a shocking lack of humanity.
1 reviews | Active since Jun 2026
Doves unprofessional and incompetency to assist clients
Not getting statements, not receiving updates...on taking out policy i wasn't informed right and worst part my payments aren't being allocated to policy and IT gets blamed for all issues...its a nightmare ..Doves can't sort out their mistakes of non communication and call centre just wants money <without giving statements or really resolving issues. Very unprofessional and very disappointing .
1 reviews | Active since Jun 2026
Doves unprofessional and incompetency to assist clients
Not getting statements, not receiving updates...on taking out policy i wasn't informed right and worst part my payments aren't being allocated to policy and IT gets blamed for all issues...its a nightmare ..Doves can't sort out their mistakes of non communication and call centre just wants money <without giving statements or really resolving issues. Very unprofessional and very disappointing .