A common starting point is 10 to 15 times your annual income, but the right amount depends on your outstanding debt (home loan, vehicle finance), how many dependants rely on your income, and how long they would need support. A Graham Silva adviser will work through these numbers with you before recommending any figure.

Life cover pays a large lump sum to your beneficiaries, typically used to settle debt, replace income or fund education. Funeral cover pays a smaller, faster amount (usually within 48 hours) specifically to cover immediate burial and related costs. Most families benefit from having both; they serve very different purposes.

Disability cover can pay either a lump sum (capital disability) or a monthly income (income protection), depending on the policy. It is triggered when illness or injury prevents you from working, either in your own occupation or any occupation, depending on how the policy is worded. The definition matters enormously; it is one of the key things an adviser should explain before you sign.

No. Severe illness cover (also called dread disease cover) pays a lump sum directly to you on diagnosis of a listed condition such as cancer, a heart attack or a stroke. It is not linked to hospital costs. You can use the money however you need to: to take time off work, cover treatment not paid by your medical aid, or reorganise your finances while you recover.

They overlap but are not the same thing. Disability cover (capital benefit) pays a once-off lump sum. Income protection replaces a percentage of your monthly income for as long as you are unable to work, or until a set age. For most working people, income protection is the more important of the two: losing your monthly income is the most immediate financial risk.

Often yes, though the insurer may load the premium, exclude the specific condition, or require additional medical tests. The outcome depends on the condition, its severity and the underwriter. Working through a broker like Graham Silva is useful here because different underwriters assess risk differently; one may decline where another will accept.

Risk premiums (life, disability, dread disease, income protection) are generally not tax-deductible for individuals in South Africa. Retirement annuity contributions are, however, deductible up to 27.5% of the greater of taxable income or remuneration, subject to an annual cap. A Graham Silva adviser can help you structure contributions to make the most of this.

A preservation fund holds retirement savings when you leave an employer, keeping the money invested and protected until retirement. A retirement annuity (RA) is a savings vehicle you contribute to voluntarily throughout your working life. Both offer tax advantages and restrict access to retirement age, but they serve different entry points in your savings journey.

Business assurance covers risks specific to a business owner or key employee. The main types are keyperson cover (compensates the business if a critical person dies or is disabled), buy-and-sell assurance (funds a buyout between partners if one dies or becomes disabled) and contingent liability cover (settles a personally guaranteed business loan). If your business depends on one or two people, or if you have a business partner, it is worth reviewing.

At minimum, any major life event should trigger a review: marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, buying a home, a significant salary change, or a business partnership. In practice, an annual check-in is a sensible habit, since products, tax rules and your own circumstances all change, and cover that was right three years ago may no longer be adequate.