Barnorama All Fun In The Barn
“So this takes place in South Africa and there is an Insurance and Investment company that we will call Green Grubber that is notorious for not paying out on funeral policies. One such victim, let’s call her Precious, was being given the run around by Green Grubber.”
“Her uncle, Obed, had been badly beaten at a shebeen (illegal bar) and in his injured state, managed to walk to the police station to report the incident. At the police station, he had a seizure and they thought he was a mental patient and did nothing. Later on in the day, a farmer had pity on Obed and took him to the local government hospital.
Obed waited outside in the pouring rain as no one was available to attend to his wounds. Finally he was admitted into the casualty ward whereby he succumbed to his injuries.”
“Obed had a funeral policy with Green Grubber for R30000 ($1852.32) paid for by his niece, Precious who was unemployed and relied on government grants. The monthly premiums of R232 ($14.17) were up to date and had never been in error however when it came time for her to claim on the policy, she was given no end of uphill.”
“She had been to their offices numerous times only to be turned away with the excuse that “it was still under assessment” and living on a rural farmstead, it’s neither cheap nor easy to to travel to the city (83km – 52 miles) having to take a minimum of 4 minibus taxi’s for a round trip. In addition, the morgue where the body was being kept wanted the body removed quickly and were charging storage per day and these costs were adding up.”
“Being unable to afford a lawyer and not being savvy on how to navigate the legal system on her own, she took matters into her own hands and did something that has worked since time immemorial… public shaming.”
“Precious removed her uncles corpse from the morgue who released it, no questions asked, glad to finally be rid of the body. Precious then hired a vehicle and had the body transported to the Green Grubber offices, hauled the body out of the vehicle and left in the centre of the building for all to see. Precious then started talking loudly explaining her experience with Green Grubber to everyone within earshot.”
“The Green Grubber staff were naturally spooked and after 30 minutes the assessment that had been pending suddenly concluded and the claim was approved. Precious left the body at the Green Grubber offices and went to the bank to ensure the funds had been deposited before returning and collecting the body.”
“In addition, Green Grubber was made to pay for Zulu traditional rituals required to to remove the deceaseds spirit from the premises and apologise for its extreme treatment before being lad to rest. (Respect towards elders and ancestors are a cornerstone in Zulu culture and rituals usually require slaughter of cattle and other animals which can end up being very expensive)”