A BrightRock study shows young South Africans view life insurance as complex, costly and hard to trust, despite recognising its importance. Key concerns include confusing terms, affordability pressures, and uncertainty about exclusions, highlighting demand for simpler and more flexible cover solutions.
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For Sarah, a 28-year-old marketing professional, life insurance has always felt like something she knows she needs but struggles to fully connect with.
“Mentally wrapping my head around the fact that money is leaving my account now and I won’t really see where it goes, that’s the hard part,” she says.
For Naledi, a 26-year-old content specialist, the concern is different. “I always worry that there are so many exclusions written into the fine print that we are not aware of.” And for Kabelo, a 30-year-old account executive, affordability remains the biggest barrier. “It’s costly,” he says simply.
When BrightRock engaged diverse young South Africans about life insurance, a clear pattern emerged: despite recognising its importance, many experience it as overly complex and hard to fully understand.
These perceptions sit within a South African context of intense economic pressure, with Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey (Q1 2025) reporting a youth unemployment rate of 46.1% (about 4.8 million young people), meaning many young adults prioritise immediate financial needs and job security over longer-term products like life insurance.
Complexity remains one of the biggest barriers
One of the strongest themes emerging from BrightRock’s conversations was that life insurance still feels unnecessarily complicated. Sarah explains that while the process initially seemed manageable, things quickly became overwhelming once the paperwork began. Like many respondents, she found technical terms such as underwriting, exclusions, and beneficiary nominations confusing rather than helpful. For consumers trying to make long-term financial decisions, this complexity often creates hesitation and uncertainty.
Trust and transparency continue to shape perceptions
Trust was another key theme raised across the group. Naledi expressed concern that insurers may look for reasons not to pay claims or that exclusions buried in policy documents could prevent payouts. While these concerns are often rooted in perception rather than experience, they remain influential in how consumers engage with life insurance.
In practice, many claim issues arise due to incomplete disclosure at the application stage or policies not being updated after significant life events such as marriage, divorce, or changes in health.
The emotional disconnect, paying for something intangible
A recurring emotional barrier highlighted by youth is the difficulty of valuing life insurance. Unlike savings or investments, life cover typically does not produce a visible return during the policyholder’s lifetime. Premiums are paid monthly, but the benefit is only realised in the event of death, illness, or disability.
For Sarah, this emotional disconnect is what makes life insurance difficult to prioritise. “You don’t really see where the money goes. It feels strange paying for something you may never actually use.” She further explains that “…if for some reason you need to cancel your life cover, you don’t get your money back”.
This creates a sense of disconnect for some consumers, who struggle with the idea of paying for something they may never personally use. However, this perspective shifts when life insurance is reframed as protection for dependants rather than an individual financial product. Its purpose is to provide continuity, ensuring that families can maintain financial stability by covering debts, living expenses, and long-term commitments such as education, should income be lost unexpectedly.
Affordability pressures remain a real constraint
For respondents aged 26-32, affordability was a major barrier to life cover. Kabelo expressed that, “Many people underestimate the cost of life insurance, and sometimes it can be a bit expensive, especially if you aren't paid well”. Yet life cover does not have to be static or expensive from the outset. It can be structured to grow over time as income and responsibilities increase.
Understanding how much cover is enough
Another common concern was uncertainty around how much life cover is appropriate. Several of the youth admitted they were unsure whether they were underinsured or paying for more cover than they needed. Another respondent, Jessica, asked, “How do economic factors, such as interest rates and inflation, affect life insurance products?”.
Determining the right level of cover typically requires considering financial responsibilities such as debt, household expenses, healthcare costs, and dependants’ long-term needs. These factors change over time; therefore, regular policy reviews are essential to ensure that cover remains aligned to real-life circumstances.
A clearer path forward for life insurance
The engagement with this group reveals a call for simplification. Consumers want clearer communication, more transparent processes, and products that adapt to their lives rather than remaining static over time.
The opportunity, therefore, lies in bridging the gap between perception and reality. By simplifying language and offering flexible solutions that reflect life’s changes, life insurance can become more accessible and more meaningful.
* Hanlon is the executive director at BrightRock
PERSONAL FINANCE