Insurance
Compare Income Protection Insurance in South Africa
Income protection is aimed at replacing part of your income if you cannot work for a period the policy recognises. It is not the same product as a lump-sum disability benefit.
Premiums, excesses, contributions and cover depend on your circumstances and the policy or scheme rules. Confirm the final terms before you buy. Information checked 29 October 2026.
Compare providers
The provider name links to the WiT Money profile where one exists. The gold button opens the recorded website. It is not a quote and not an application.
3 of 3 products, in provider name order. A missing premium, contribution or excess is not shown as zero, and nothing is ranked as cheapest. A filter matches the published line. It does not decide that you qualify.
Discovery LifeDiscovery Life Income Continuation Benefit
Life or funeral cover. Confirm whether the brand is the insurer.
- Premium
- Personalised quotation. A premium is not printed on this card.
- Waiting period
- Waiting/deferred period varies; verify occupational definition
Underwriter or legal entity. Confirm the legal insurer on the policy schedule.
What the product line describes. Policy and option dependent
Advantages
- Discovery Life Plan technical documentation describes the benefit families.
Considerations
- Plan edition, severity definitions, related benefits and integration rules vary
- Documents may predate current offering.
Notes checked 29 October 2026. A benefit is confirmed only when the policy schedule includes it. A missing limit is not R0.
MomentumIncome protection – recurring income on qualifying inability to work
Life or funeral cover. Confirm whether the brand is the insurer.
- Premium
- Personalised quotation. A premium is not printed on this card.
- Waiting period
- Waiting/deferred period varies; verify occupational definition
Underwriter or legal entity. Confirm the legal insurer on the policy schedule.
What the product line describes. Policy and option dependent
Advantages
- Official category directory explicitly describes the relevant benefit.
Considerations
- Conditions, premium, occupation definitions and benefit options vary by policy.
Notes checked 29 October 2026. A benefit is confirmed only when the policy schedule includes it. A missing limit is not R0.
PPSPPS Sickness / Permanent Incapacity benefits – professional income protection
Life or funeral cover. Confirm whether the brand is the insurer.
- Premium
- Personalised quotation. A premium is not printed on this card.
- Waiting period
- Waiting/deferred period varies; verify occupational definition
Underwriter or legal entity. Confirm the legal insurer on the policy schedule.
What the product line describes. Restricted eligibility for qualifying graduate professionals.
Advantages
- Dedicated solutions for qualifying graduate professionals
- Published product descriptions.
Considerations
- Membership/qualification restrictions
- Benefit waiting periods and definitions apply.
Notes checked 29 October 2026. A benefit is confirmed only when the policy schedule includes it. A missing limit is not R0.
Compare selected products
Choose up to three from this page. A missing benefit is not treated as excluded. Confirm it in the wording.
No products selected.
Not shown as a current product
- Hollard. Hollard disability/impairment income benefits – availability check. Confirm with the provider before treating it as available.
Estimate with your own figures
Type the amounts you want to test. The result uses those amounts only. It does not fetch a quote, and it does not decide a claim.
How to read this comparison
A waiting period is the time you must be unable to work before a benefit can start. A benefit period is how long payments can continue. Temporary inability to work and permanent disability are different tests, and an own-occupation definition is not the same as an any-occupation definition.
Self-employed income can be harder to evidence. The benefit is often a percentage of income, and it can be reduced by other income you receive. This page does not give tax advice on whether a benefit is taxable.
If your household needs your salary, the risk of being unable to work is as serious as the risk of dying. Income protection pays a monthly benefit, often up to a percentage of what you earned, after a waiting period, if you meet the disability definition.
Retrenchment cover is a different, usually short, benefit. Do not buy one because you thought it was the other. WiT Money does not tell you which to own.
How the cover works
The definition
Own occupation, own or similar occupation, or any occupation. The words decide whether you must be unable to do your job or unable to do any job. The difference is the product.
Waiting period
You might wait a month or six months before the first payment. A longer wait cuts the premium and requires a bigger emergency fund.
The benefit
It is capped, it may be taxed depending on who paid the premium, and it stops at the end of the benefit period or when you can work.
What to check
Occupation definition
The exact test in the wording.
Percentage of income
Often well below 100%, so that working still pays.
Waiting period and term
When it starts and when it stops.
Exclusions
Pre-existing conditions, hazardous pursuits, and sometimes mental-health limits. Read them.
Risks
- Buying 'any occupation' cover and thinking it pays if you cannot do your profession.
- No emergency fund for the waiting period.
- A retrenchment in a year when you bought illness cover only.
Claims and complaints
Report a claim to the insurer, scheme or administrator named on your documents, in the way the policy or scheme rules describe. WiT Money does not decide the claim. If you have complained to that organisation and you are still not satisfied, the National Financial Ombud Scheme handles certain financial complaints, and the Council for Medical Schemes handles medical scheme complaints. Take the policy schedule, the rejection letter and the claim documents with you.
How WiT Money compares these products
Products stay in provider name order. A car excess, a funeral benefit, a medical scheme contribution and a pet plan are not sorted against one another. Nothing is ranked as the cheapest. A listed name is not a recommendation, and WiT Money does not sell the policy. Where this site has the provider's logo, it is shown. Otherwise the name is shown without a mark. An FSP number or a scheme registration number is not printed unless the recorded page already states it, and it is not a register check by WiT Money.
Questions readers ask
Does this pay if I am retrenched?
Not unless the policy includes a retrenchment benefit. Standard income protection is about illness and injury.
Is the benefit taxable?
It depends on whether you or your employer paid the premium and on the current Income Tax Act treatment. Ask the insurer for the tax explanation that matches the policy, and check it against SARS guidance.
Can I cover my full salary?
Insurers cap the percentage so that you are not better off not working. Expect a partial income, not a full replacement.
Related products
Guides
Other insurance pages
Sources
Page updated 29 October 2026. A source date is the day WiT Money checked that page, not a promise the institution has not changed it since.
- Financial Sector Conduct Authority
Financial Sector Conduct Authority · checked 28 October 2026
- Budget 2026 tax guide
South African Revenue Service · checked 28 October 2026
- National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa
National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa · checked 29 October 2026