Pension fund's failure to resolve death benefit claim

In December 2025, the Chemical Industries National Provident Fund (CINPF) faced severe criticism from the Pension Funds Adjudicator, Lebogang Mogashoa, for its poor governance in handling a death benefit claim that had remained unresolved for nearly nine years. The deceased, who was a member of the fund from 2013 until his death in 2017, had over R40,500 in his fund. The claim, lodged in August 2017, still awaited resolution, with the fund unable to explain what had happened to the money.

The complaint was lodged by the deceased's mother, who relied on him for financial assistance. The fund's administrator initially found that the deceased was not registered in their system. However, in November 2025, the current administrator revealed that the former administrators Akani and NBC had received the death benefit claim in August 2017 and even paid R394,200 to CINPF Raubex Group on 11 August 2017. Despite this, no payment was made from CINPF's system due to the lack of a distribution resolution.

Adjudicator Mogashoa condemned the fund's conduct as "severely deprecated," noting that the board only provided an interim response nine years after the deceased's death. He emphasized the board's responsibility to maintain proper records and ensure compliance with legal obligations. The adjudicator also rejected any suggestion that administrators' changes could be used as an excuse for the fund's inability to establish the benefit's status.

Consequently, CINPF was directed to finalize its investigation and distribute the death benefit to the deceased's dependants and beneficiaries, with a financial sanction of 10.25% per annum imposed on the unpaid amount.