Dear Client
On Monday evening the honourable President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa communicated the decision of the National Coronavirus Command Council to enforce a nation-wide lockdown for 21 days starting at 23h59 on 26 March in terms of the Disaster Management Act. This unprecedented action is being implemented to mitigate the spread of coronavirus within our population and to manage the impact of the pandemic on our healthcare system.
As Sanlam Corporate, we share the President’s view that this measure will have a material impact on livelihoods and society and a lasting effect on the economy but that the human cost of delaying decisive action would be far greater. We empathise with the breadwinners, families and businesses that have to make hard choices and significant sacrifices over this period. Our collective response to the significant humanitarian threat posed by the coronavirus pandemic has the potential to be the defining ‘thuma mina’ moment of our generation.
We need to act responsibly now for our own and future generations.
Sanlam Corporate is resolute in enabling financial resilience for our clients through these difficult times. Built on over 100 years of institutional memory, our business is robust, prepared and fully capable of delivering on our commitments. Our commitment to you is that we will do everything within our control to ensure that your retirement fund administration and investments are being managed with care, insurance claims will be paid, pensioners will receive their pension payments and that our staff are available to handle all queries.
We have progressively implemented various business continuity measures over the past few weeks to safeguard the continuation of our core operations despite the constraints of a prolonged nation-wide lockdown. Measures in place include empowering our employees to work remotely and ensuring that essential services including disability income payments, annuity & pensioner payments, death & funeral claims, retirement fund exits, investment pricing administration, and contributions & premiums receipting are prioritised.
As we communally transition into an extraordinary environment, we anticipate that there may be temporary disruptions given the dynamic and unpredictable nature of such a change. We ask for your patience and understanding during this time and assure you that the Sanlam Corporate executive leadership team remains fully engaged, responsible and accountable for ensuring business continuity, service delivery and accessibility.
The lockdown and associated economic impact will place many businesses and their employees under significant financial pressure. Please engage your dedicated Client Relations Manager or Client Solutions Specialist or EB BlueStar Consultant should you wish to explore options to mitigate the financial impact for employers participating in the Sanlam Umbrella Fund by limiting retirement fund contributions whilst maintaining risk premiums as an emergency measure. The respective Client Relations, Client Solutions and EB BlueStar teams are available throughout the lockdown and will be able to engage with you electronically and/or telephonically.
Our Individual Member Support capability is functional with Retirement Benefits Counsellors ready to support qualifying retirement fund members by providing information, empathy and professionalism in their time of need. Please note that qualifying retirement fund members may access the Individual Member Support capability through the following channels:
In order to facilitate social distancing, our walk-in centres are closed during the lockdown period with members able to channel queries and claims electronically to SCClientCare@sanlam.co.za.
We encourage members of retirement funds administered by Sanlam to utilise our electronic portals available via the Sanlam Client Portal or the Sanlam MyRetirement App available on the Google Play Store or Apple App Store to access information and to transact online.
Further communications will follow as our response to the pandemic and the lockdown evolves.
For more detailed information relating to the following businesses, please click on the links below for the communication or make contact with the Executives responsible for the respective units via their email.
Should you have any queries relating to Sanlam Corporate’s capabilities during the lockdown or wish to escalate a complaint during this period, please contact Viresh.Maharaj@sanlam.co.za or Mkuseli.Mbomvu@sanlam.co.za.
In conclusion, on behalf of Sanlam Corporate and the broader Sanlam Group, we thank you for your continued support of our business, especially during these difficult times.
Regards
Sanlam Corporate