Futurewise is a disruptive and pioneering financial services provider focused on driving access to education through innovative financial solutions.
Futurewise is an education insurance specialist, created with South African children, and their parents in mind. In addition to having expertise from across the financial services sector, we are also parents and are proud to be part of an organisation that is committed to providing tangible solutions to enable parents, guardians and custodians to secure the educational futures of South Africa’s next generation of leaders, innovators and change makers.
Futurewise is an authorised Financial Services Provider - FSP 52148. Futurewise products are underwritten by Guardrisk Life Limited, an authorised Financial Services Provider (FSP No 76) and a licensed insurer in terms of the Insurance Act. Futurewise Savings Fund is managed by Nedbank CIB.
You have life insurance in place to give you the peace of mind that your family can live a good life in the event of you not being able to support them any longer. Life insurance is generally in place for all other expenses to be taken care of. Futurewise Education Insurance is a fit for purpose insurance solution that will kick in to cover all school related expenses, paying to the education provider on an annual basis when required. It has a specific education focus, and is priced accordingly which makes this solution a must have as a compliment to your existing life insurance policies.
A parent or legal guardian of a child under the age of 14 can get cover for that child’s education expenses. Both the parent or legal guardian, and the child, must live in South Africa and have South African ID numbers. The parent or legal guardian must be older than 20 and younger than 65 years old and must be permanently employed or self-employed. The policyholder must pay the premium from a South African bank account in their own name.
You can get a quote online by visiting Futurewise.co.za and clicking “Get a quote”. Answer a few questions about yourself and the child you wish to secure cover for, and we’ll give you a quote for your premium. If you choose to proceed with the quote, we’ll need some more information regarding your child, the beneficiary who will be responsible for the child in the event of your death, and the details of the bank account from which we’ll deduct the monthly premium via debit order. No medical information or tests are required.
If you prefer to talk to a sales agent, visit our website and enter your name and phone number. A sales agent will call you back, and you can get a quote and cover over the phone.
You can only get cover for yourself. The policyholder must be the life insured. The person whose life is covered must answer the questions themselves and confirm the declarations.
Yes! Each policy covers one child, so you will need to follow the process to get cover for each child, up to a maximum of three children.
Premiums are tailored to the needs of each child and will differ based on the age of your child.
Only the parent or legal guardian of a child can be the policyholder
In the event of your death, total permanent disability or terminal illness as defined in the policy document, your Futurewise Risk Benefit will pay an annual amount according to the age of your child (refer to the Fixed Annual Benefits table in your policy document). The benefit will be paid annually on the first business day after the child's birthday. The benefit will be paid to your nominated beneficiary. If you’ve chosen to nominate the Fundi Education Trust as the beneficiary, the Trust will be responsible for allocating the Risk Benefit to your child’s education institution each year.
For more information about Fundi, click here.
The Risk Benefit is paid out in the event of your Death, Total Permanent Disability or Terminal Illness before the policy expires, which happens the day your child turns 22 years old. Futurewise rewards you for protecting your child’s education by paying back 10% of premiums every five into your bank account. If you invest in the savings fund, it pays out regardless of whether you claim.
When you get Futurewise Education Insurance, you will need to nominate a beneficiary. The beneficiary should be the child's other parent or legal guardian, who will look after your child in the event of your death. The beneficiary will have to be living in South Africa and have a South African bank account to receive any claim settlement.
You also have the option to nominate the Fundi Education Trust as the beneficiary. This means that the Trust will be responsible for allocating the Risk Benefit directly to your child’s education institution. This is to ensure that the benefit is spent as intended. Fundi is South Africa's leading education finance and fund management specialist that has been operating for more than 25 years. They currently partner with over 120 businesses and organisations to provide end-to-end bursary fund administration solutions, ensuring that bursary funds are spent as intended.
For more information about Fundi, click here.
When you sign up for Futurewise Education Insurance, you choose the date you want your cover to start. You’ll be covered from that date, provided that Futurewise receives the first Premium.
When you sign up for Futurewise Education Insurance, you choose the date you want your debit order to be deducted. Your first premium will be deducted on the first debit order date.
Cover ends on the day that the child turns 22 years old. No further premiums will be deducted after this date.
Premiums can only be collected from a South African bank account in the policyholder's name.
Benefits will increase annually on the policy anniversary to cater for education inflation. As such, premiums will similarly increase.
If you miss a premium payment (other than your first premium payment), we’ll notify you of the missed payment, and you can confirm if we can collect the missed premium via a once-off debit order. You will be granted a 31-day grace period, so you will still be covered while sorting out the missed payment. However, should you miss a second premium payment, your policy will be cancelled, and Futurewise will pay your savings balance into your bank account.
You can keep your policy up to date via the Futurewise self-service portal. Login to update your contact details, your bank details, and beneficiary details. You can view your policy at any time to ensure all information is up to date. You can log in at Futurewise.co.za using the password you’ve set. If you haven’t yet activated your self-service login, call us on 0800 388883 or drop us a mail at info@Futurewise.co.za, and we’ll send you a link to activate your account and set a password.
You can cancel your policy at any time by calling our Help Centre at 0800 388883. When you cancel your policy, we will pay out your Savings Fund within 31 days. Remember, you can withdraw your savings once per year, so there is no need to cancel your policy in order to access the savings.
Futurewise offers a flexible savings plan that helps parents prepare for education costs. You decide how much to contribute each month, up to a maximum of R2000, and our Investment Partner, Nedbank CIB, will manage the funds. You can choose to withdraw from your savings fund once per year. The balance will be paid out to the policyholder the day after the child turns 22. You can manage your savings through our online Futurewise self-service portal.
You can increase or decrease your monthly savings contribution via the Futurewise self-service portal. You can log in at www.Futurewise.co.za using the password you’ve set. If you haven’t yet activated your self-service login, call us on 0800 388883 or drop us an email at info@Futurewise.co.za, and we’ll send you a link to activate your account and set a password.
Your savings balance will be available via the Futurewise self-service portal. You can log in at Futurewise.co.za using the password you’ve set. If you haven’t yet activated your self-service login, call us on 0800 388883 or drop us a mail at info@Futurewise.co.za, and we’ll send you a link to activate your account and set a password.
You can request a withdrawal from your savings via the Futurewise self-service portal once a year. You can log in at Futurewise.co.za using the password you’ve set. If you haven’t yet activated your self-service login, call us on 0800 388883 or drop us a mail at info@Futurewise.co.za, and we’ll send you a link to activate your account and set a password.
For policyholders who are permanently employed at the time the policy starts, Futurewise will waive up to 6 months of risk premiums if you get retrenched. During this period, you will still be covered in the case of death, disability or terminal illness. Any savings contributions will be paused. This benefit is available once throughout the policy term and is subject to a 12-month waiting period. This benefit is not available to self-employed policyholders.
After every 5 years of continuous cover, Futurewise will contribute 10% of the risk premiums you pay (over each 5-year period from the commencement date of cover), into your bank account.
To access our education partners through our Learning Hub click here. Make sure to look out for email communications regarding special offers from our education partners!
Your beneficiary can claim in the event of your death or if you suffer a total permanent disability or are diagnosed with a terminal illness as defined in the Policy terms. Policy premiums will have to be up to date for a claim. A claim must be lodged within 180 days of the claim event (the death, total permanent disability or terminal illness of the policyholder). Please ensure that your beneficiary is aware of your Futurewise policy so that they know to initiate a claim in the event that anything happens to you.
In the unfortunate event that your beneficiary needs to initiate a claim, they can email claims@Futurewise.co.za or call us at 0800 388883. Our claims agents will walk you through the process and confirm the documents required. Guardrisk will handle the assessment of claims.
The benefit will be paid annually on the first business day after the child's birthday. The benefit will be paid to your nominated beneficiary. If you’ve chosen to nominate Fundi Education Trust as the beneficiary, the Trust will be responsible for allocating the benefit to your child’s educational institution.
There is no waiting period in the event of accidental death. There is a 6-month waiting period from the policy start date for Natural Death, Total Permanent Disability and Terminal Illness, and there is a 12-month waiting period from the policy start date for the Retrenchment Benefit.
Please refer to the policy wording for full terms and conditions on the exclusions affecting the Risk Benefit and the Retrenchment Benefit.