Question:
Myself and my living partner lived together for 28 years and he recently passed away. The beneficiary was a relative, I was financially dependant on him - am entitled to any benefits?
Answer:
Andries, If you are talking about a retirement fund death benefit, then you are entitled to benefits, even if you were not married to the deceased. Financial dependency is a factual test, and the trustees must do the necessary investigations, to see who these dependants were. If you are not listed on the nominations form, you should contact the fund administrator and inform of them of your circumstances, just to make sure they are aware of it. If they refuse to acknowledge you, you can lodge a formal complaint with them, and failing this, you can appeal to the Pension Funds Adjudicator.
