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Bradley G

1 reviews | Active since Jun 2016

11 Apr 2019, 19:27

Santam consultants don't know their building insurance product!

So far my experience dealing with Santam Direct has been extremely painful. First a few weeks ago I logged a sales call back, on their website. Consultant calls me back. I ask for a quote on building insurance, but he tells me I can't get building insurance without also taking household contents insurance - which is a plain lie. And I tell him so, and he continues to lie and say it is mandatory. I already have content insurance anyway. Please check your call recordings for call made to my cell number within last 30 days to listen to your consultant lying.

Secondly, two weeks later, I try again and call into Santam Direct myself. Get assisted quite quickly by Tyron. I accept the quote and he forwards me confirmation of cover and policy. The reason I chose Santam for building insurance is because their product offering clearly states that their building insurance product covers you "while the house is being transferred to your name". This is shown on their website and in policy document. Nevertheless, the day after I get confirmation of cover and policy on email, I receive another email from Sinethemba Vumindaba saying they have been trying to reach me, and need to cancel the policy because the house is not registered to me!! Look at your product features! I check policy doc and the consultant took down my cell number incorrectly, but they still had a correct work phone number for me, but no calls. I email Sinethemba back on the email address he/she sent from ********** but these emails go nowhere and are not responded to. I send 4 emails. And the contact number given in the email is just the call centre number, so you can't get through to them that way either. In my emails I state that Santam building insurance product clearly states that cover is provided while the property is being transferred into your name, both shown on their website and in policy docs. So you can't say on the one hand, we will give you cover while the property is being transferred to you, and then on the other hand say we can't insure and must cancel policy because the property is not registered to you! Someone doesn't know their products very well. The property in question is in process of being transferred to us. Offer to purchase was signed and accepted by all parties 30 days ago. Now the lawyers are busy with the transfer and registration. But it has been completely frustrating dealing with Santam. They take down wrong contact number. Still have one correct number, but are "unable to get hold of me". Send me two emails that I responded to, but my responses go nowhere and emails go unanswered and no other way to get hold of the person sending them. And they don't know their own product offerings! You clearly need to do better.

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Replies (2)
Santam
Santam's reply12 Apr 2019, 07:42
Official
Good morning Bradley,

Thank you for your post above. We can understand your frustration and we really do apologise for the inconvenience caused.

We will investigate this and revert back within 2 working days.

Thank you and kind regards.

Stephan Olivier
Client care media manager
BG
Bradley G's update02 May 2019, 22:32
Reviewer Update
Absolutely pathetic service from Vuyisa Mrulekana, Stephan Olivier and the Santam complaints staff. Still were not able to offer what is advertised and what is written in their policy documents. No clue as to what is written in their own contracts. My last response below: "Vuyisa, You can go ahead and cancel this policy, as I went elsewhere. Your given reasons in your email below do not make sense on at least two accounts. Firstly, not only on your website, but in the policy contract I received, there is NOT JUST one line about cover whilst property is being transferred. There is a whole paragraph in the policy contract attached, which reads as follows: "BUILDINGS COVER The cover below applies to the buildings on the premises of your risk address(es) shown in your policy summary. COVER BEFORE PROPERTY TRANSFER We cover loss of or damage to buildings on the property you buy caused by an insured event for the period between you signing a deed of sale and the transfer of the property into your name by the Deeds Office. You must insure the buildings under this policy. This cover will not apply if the buildings are insured by the seller or on the seller’s behalf. " So its not "just an error" on the website, or quote. There is a full clause about this in your own policy which I received. On what grounds then can you cancel the policy??? If you provide cover whilst in transfer, logically, the property would not be in your name, hence this would not be a requirement for cover - By your own policy wording. Secondly, on your words, to reinstate the policy, the start date needs to change to the date we take ownership. "o When will you move into the property ? the current start date of your policy is 09 April 2019 - it needs to be changed to the date that you will move into the property. " Have you really completely missed the substance of my complaint???? We are talking here about building insurance cover, WHILST THE PROPERTY IS BEING TRANSFERRED into our name. Why would I now accept reinstatement of your policy, with the start date being the day we move in?? As by then it will be registered in our name. So why would I then be requesting a specific insurance product NOW, that covers the property whilst being transferred, if I could just wait until it was in our name, and then get cover?? What is the point? For this engagement with you, and the complete experience dealing with Santam Direct, I can say with 100% cer*****y that I will not deal with you again. You have shown yourselves lacking in terms of selling your own products, and secondly in handling complaint and completely missing the substance of the issue concerned. My plan was to move my entire personal insurance portfolio of R3000.00 p.m to Santam Direct, but that is definitely not going to happen. As above, cancel this policy. I have already reversed your pro-rata debit order, and put a stop on future Santam debits."