by Jessica Wood, journalist, Justmoney.co.za
A new life insurance company, Different Life, has launched this month and its unique selling point is that the first premium that customers pay (and the subsequent anniversary payment of that premium) are allocated to dedicated charities that customers can donate to via their online platform.
Charities that customers can support include the Wildlands Conservation Trust, the Johannesburg Organisation of Services to the Homeless, Children in the Wilderness and many more.
Different Life is an online insurance company and its products are underwritten by Old Mutual Alternative Risk Transfer Ltd. It was founded by brothers Philip and Atholl Tomlinson and is aimed at the “emerging, technology-savvy consumer.”
Philip Tomlinson, founder and CEO of Different Life, claims premiums will be attractive: “The technology-based approach and bespoke online platform means that costs will be kept to a minimum which in turn ensures that premiums will be very competitive.”
The company offers life and disability cover up to R10 million, salary protection up to R90 000 per month, and critical illness cover of up to R5 million.
A spokesperson for Different Life told Justmoney: “We had been looking for a way to make business better in South Africa for several years. However, the concept of Different Life together with the Different Donation only crystallised some 15 months ago.”
He added: “We believe that much more can be done in South African business to address social inequality. A country is only as strong as its communities, and if we want to prosper as a nation, we need to work together. [Businesses are] not independent of the communities in which they operate and must play a critical role.”
How does it work?
“The first premium that a new client pays (and each anniversary premium) goes directly to the donor’s account on the Different.org platform. Effectively, Different Life is foregoing those premiums. The platform features a variety of different projects for which it is fundraising at any point in time and the donor is then able to allocate the funds to a project or projects featured on the platform.
“There is an option to create further donations via referrals. For each referral that results in a policy being issued, the referrer will have another premium credited to their account for donating to a project,” explained Different Life.
Take up of policies
Even though Different Life only officially launched on 12 March, the company already has several policies on its books as a result of its trial phase.
“We are pleased to say that in the few days since our launch, we have seen a dramatic rise in website traffic which augurs extremely well for our business and our partner charities,” said Tomlinson.
For more information on Different Life, click here.