Your debit orders are growing faster than inflation. Here is how to catch it.
A R1 200 premium rising 25% a year costs R39 560 more over five years than one rising with inflation. A 20-minute statement audit finds it.
In 30 seconds
- One of us saw a household insurance premium jump 25% in a single year - against inflation of 4.4%.
- Left alone, a 25% yearly rise turns R1 200 a month into R2 930 by year five and R8 941 by year ten.
- Compare two statements a year apart, list every debit order, and get two quotes for anything that grew faster than inflation.
Why nobody notices
A debit order runs itself. That is the point - and the problem.
Increases usually arrive once a year, in a letter or email that looks like every other renewal notice. The new amount simply goes off on the same day.
Headline inflation was 4.4% in August 2026 (Stats SA, CPI August 2026). Anything climbing much faster deserves a question.
What 25% a year really costs
A 25% rise sounds like a one-off. It is not - it compounds, because next year's increase is on the already-higher premium.
| R1 200 a month today | Rising 25% a year | Rising 4.4% a year |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly in year 5 | R2 930 | R1 426 |
| Paid over 5 years | R118 181 | R78 621 |
| Monthly in year 10 | R8 941 | R1 768 |
Five years of not looking costs R39 560 in this example. Try your own premium:
The 20-minute statement audit
- Download two statements twelve months apart - say this month and the same month last year.
- List every debit order on both: who, how much, which date.
- Work out the change for each one: (new - old) ÷ old.
- Flag anything above inflation, and anything you do not recognise at all.
- Check for duplicates and leftovers - cover for a car you sold, a gym you stopped going to, two policies covering the same thing.
How to push back
- Ask the insurer why it went up, in writing. Age, claims and sum insured all move premiums - so do pricing decisions you can question.
- Check the sum insured. Some policies escalate cover every year, and the premium follows. You may not need the extra cover.
- Get at least two comparable quotes, ideally through an independent broker, before the next anniversary. Compare cover, not just price.
- Do not cancel before the replacement is active. A gap in cover is a far bigger risk than one more month's premium.
If a debit order should not be there
Since 13 April 2026 the window to dispute a debit order through your bank is 60 calendar days (it used to be 40). A dispute is not an automatic reversal - especially for a DebiCheck mandate you approved. PASA debit order dispute FAQ
Disputing a debit order is not the same as cancelling the contract. To stop a policy, cancel it with the insurer too.
We could not verify from a primary FSCA source how much notice an insurer must give before a premium increase. Ask your insurer, or the FSCA, for the rule that applies to your policy.
How MaxWealth helps
Debit Watch in MaxWealth does the statement comparison above for you. Once a payment has repeated for three months, it lists every recurring debit order and flags the ones that have gone up, gone missing or newly appeared, so a premium increase shows up the month it happens. It shows the numbers; whether to push back is still your call.
Sources
- CPI 4.4% (August 2026): Stats SA - Consumer Price Index, August 2026.
- 60-day dispute window from 13 April 2026: Payments Association of South Africa - FAQ.
- The 25% increase: a MaxWealth team member's own policy - an anecdote, not a market statistic.
- Premium figures: our own calculation, shown in the calculator above.
Education, not financial advice. This post explains how the rules and the arithmetic work. It does not recommend any financial product, and your own situation may differ - speak to a registered financial adviser or tax practitioner before you act. Figures were checked against the linked sources on the date above.