After serving a couple for over 30 years, a housekeeper is awarded R1.9 million in death benefits, despite an executor's challenge to her status as a dependent. The Pension Funds Adjudicator's ruling highlights the importance of protecting those who relied on the deceased for financial support.
A housekeeper, who was embraced as a daughter by a couple, now both deceased, became the beneficiary of R1.9 million despite an executor's appeal against the decision.
Having served the family for 30 years, the housekeeper continued to receive monthly support after her formal employment ended. Consequently, following the couple’s deaths, she was legally recognised as a dependent, securing her status as a beneficiary.
The executor of the deceased's estate unsuccessfully attempted to overturn the decision by lodging a complaint to the Office of the Pension Funds Adjudicator (PFA), arguing that Allan Gray Retirement Annuity Fund had erred in allocating the full death benefit to the housekeeper.
The executor submitted that the benefit should have been paid in full to the estate or shared with the housekeeper, who would have received an estimated R400,000 from the estate in the event of her former employers’ death.
