Frequently Asked Questions

When I Am Gone is an estate-readiness service for getting affairs in order before there is a crisis. Depending on the service selected, this may include will preparation, secure document storage, key-holder and death-reporting tools, estate-readiness information, and related practical support.

No. WIAG is not presented as an insurer. Where insurance-related products are discussed, those should be treated as separate regulated products that would depend on licensing, insurer participation, underwriting, policy terms and availability.

WIAG focuses on estate readiness. That includes helping users prepare and organise important information, store key documents securely, manage key-holder arrangements, and prepare practical information that may be needed by family members or an executor after death.

Certain product areas may be introduced later, including funeral cover, life cover, liquidity or shortfall cover, and related calculators or planning tools. Until those products are actually launched, described properly, and supported by the correct regulatory and insurer structure, they should be treated as "coming soon" only.

No. Estate readiness is not only for older people. It is relevant to adults who have children, a home loan, business interests, dependants, insurance, a serious relationship, or simply a wish to leave their affairs in better order.

Because death creates practical problems very quickly. Families often need documents, contact details, funeral guidance, banking and policy information, and a clear indication of whether there is a valid will and who should be contacted first.

No. WIAG is not a law firm, is not a lawyer, and does not hold itself out as either. WIAG is a technology and information platform. It provides software tools, secure document storage, and estate-readiness information. Nothing on this platform constitutes legal advice, and WIAG does not take instructions to act as a legal representative for any person.

Where you indicate that you need personalised advice on your will or estate, a qualified attorney or adviser from the WIAG panel, who is qualified to advise on wills, will be in touch with you. The panel consists of qualified South African attorneys and advisers. Their involvement is separate from the WIAG software and information service.

A will allows you to decide who should inherit from your estate and who you want to act as executor. The Department of Justice also notes that a will is the document in which a person sets out what must happen to their estate when they die.

No. A will prepared online is not automatically valid just because it was generated on a service. In South Africa, wills must comply with the Wills Act formalities, including being in writing and being properly signed and witnessed.

In general, a South African will becomes valid only once it has been properly executed. The Wills Act requires the will to be in writing, signed by the testator at the end, and signed or acknowledged in the presence of at least two competent witnesses present at the same time.

Yes, where that service is offered, WIAG can store a signed copy and related estate-readiness information. The original signed will should still be kept safely, and the service should record where that original is physically kept.

The latest properly signed will is usually the one that matters, assuming it is valid and has not been revoked. WIAG shows version history clearly and distinguishes between old drafts, current drafts, and the latest signed version.

Yes. You may still use WIAG to store a signed copy, record where the original is kept, organise supporting documents, and create a structured estate-readiness record.

Yes, but the process should not be treated casually. If you have minor children, the will process should deal properly with guardianship, trusteeship, and any trust or management structure that may be needed for inheritances.

WIAG offers a Muslim will draft pathway, or a draft prepared specifically for scholar review. The will still has to comply with South African law, and more complex family structures are routed for review by a qualified attorney and a recognised scholar before signature. WIAG never certifies the Shariah validity of any output.

No. The will generator is a document-preparation and estate-readiness tool. Users are warned where a matter is too complex for an automated pathway. This is not a legal advice service.

The WIAG vault is a secure document and information record designed to hold key estate-readiness material. That may include wills, IDs, contact details, policy summaries, funeral wishes, medical aid details, and other information that may be needed after death.

Typical examples include your signed will, ID documents, marriage documents, ANC if applicable, property records, key policy information, contact details for advisers, medical aid details, and practical guidance for family or the executor.

The vault uses layered access, audit logs, verification controls, and private document access. We do not promise absolute security, but we design our controls carefully and honestly. Sensitive vault data is encrypted on your own device before it reaches us.

The emergency packet is the limited information needed quickly after death, such as basic identity details, medical aid, doctor details, emergency contacts, funeral wishes, and confirmation that a will exists. The full vault is broader and is only released after stronger verification.

Not automatically. Access follows a verification process. The fact that a death is reported does not mean the full vault is immediately opened to anyone.

No. The QR code triggers the death-reporting and verification process. It does not directly unlock the full vault.

A key holder is a nominated person who may help trigger the death-reporting process and assist with first steps. A key holder is not automatically the executor and is not automatically entitled to the full vault.

Yes. The service allows you to change key-holder details, invite a new key holder, and keep a record of who accepted that role.

You can appoint a replacement or backup key holder. It is sensible to keep this information reviewed and up to date.

Yes. Those are exactly the kinds of practical details that can be useful in an emergency packet or estate-readiness record.

Yes. Funeral wishes should be stored in a place that can be found quickly. They should not be left only inside a will because wills are often read too late for immediate funeral decisions.

Yes, where that feature is offered, personal letters and legacy messages may be stored separately from the core legal and estate-readiness documents.

The WIAG Card is intended to help the right people find the right process at the right time. It points them to a secure death-reporting workflow and does not serve as a direct key to private documents.

The QR code opens the death-reporting process, confirms that the person has a WIAG record, and guides the reporter through the next steps. It does not expose private data on its own.

No. Access remains subject to verification and internal controls.

They are taken to a secure page where they can report a death, provide their details, state their relationship to the deceased, and upload the required documentation. The report then goes through verification and review.

Because death must be registered and the Department of Home Affairs issues the death certificate after registration. That is an important part of verifying that a death has in fact occurred.

A registered key holder, family member, emergency contact, or another person involved in the immediate steps after death may report it. Reporting a death does not automatically give that person access to everything in the vault.

Scanning the QR code alone does not expose the vault. The design assumes that the wrong person may find the card, which is why access must remain subject to verification.

The card is replaceable and the QR token can be revoked and reissued if necessary.

No. Executor choice remains yours. WIAG does not require you to appoint WIAG as executor.

Yes. You may appoint an executor of your choice, subject to the ordinary legal process after death. The Department of Justice explains that, where there is a will, the person named in the will is normally the person appointed as executor by the Master.

The executor will need key identity documents, the original will, marital-status documents where relevant, an asset and liability picture, contact details for professionals involved, and practical records needed to start the estate process.

It is a structured summary that helps an executor or family locate the key information quickly. It is not just a pile of unorganised PDFs.

WIAG may assist with practical steps, document routing, structured information, and support services where those are part of the offering. That is described accurately and not overstated.

Not necessarily. The answer depends on the service selected and the role WIAG or any related professional is actually performing. WIAG explains clearly where it is providing software, where it is providing support, and where a separate legal or fiduciary service is involved.

Yes, where that feature is offered, WIAG may assist with administrative support for section 29 and section 35 deceased-estate notices.

WIAG can assist with Government Gazette submission or placement support if that service is selected. This is administrative support only.

R 295 per newspaper notice. Government Gazette submission assistance is an optional R 100 add-on. Third-party publication charges are separate unless expressly included.

WIAG offers three things: a member-priced South African will, an encrypted estate vault for documents and key-holder arrangements, and an executor handover pack. These are available now. Insurance products are not yet available.

Yes. The will wizard on the WIAG platform is built and operated by When I Am Gone (Pty) Ltd. Users of the WIAG will wizard are using the WIAG service.

Willably is a separate will-technology platform. WIAG may in future integrate with Willably as a technology option for certain will-generation functions. That integration is not yet active. Until it is announced and live, all will and vault services on WIAG are provided by When I Am Gone (Pty) Ltd using its own infrastructure.

Yes. If any change is made to the underlying will-technology provider, WIAG will communicate that clearly before it takes effect. Users will not be silently moved to a different platform.

No. The will is a separate legal document. The vault is a secure information store. You can have a vault without a will, or a will without a vault, or both. They are designed to work together but they are not the same thing.

Yes. You can upload a signed copy of your will to the vault, record where the original is physically kept, and make that information available to your key holder and executor through the handover process.

No. The original signed will should be kept by you or a trusted person. WIAG holds a copy and records where the original is stored. The original remains with you.

The will wizard and estate vault are software tools, not financial services products. When I Am Gone (Pty) Ltd is also a registered Financial Services Provider (FSP No: 55699). That FSP licence applies to financial advisory services that WIAG is authorised to provide - it does not change the nature of the will or vault software.

Not yet. You can join the waitlist. We will notify you when the product provider, pricing, disclosures and application steps are available.

No. The waitlist only records your interest. It is not an application, a quote, advice, underwriting approval or a policy.

The product provider, underwriter and authorised distribution arrangement will be disclosed before any application or purchase. No underwriter has been named yet.

No. The vault is an administrative storage and handover tool. Insurance services, where live, are financial services and are treated separately under the relevant regulatory framework.

Insurance products may involve regulated remuneration or commission under FAIS. Any such remuneration will be disclosed to you before any application or purchase.

Funeral cover is usually intended to help with funeral-related costs after death. It is not the same as life cover, and it is not the same as estate-liquidity cover.

Life cover is generally intended to pay a lump sum after death, usually to help dependants or nominated beneficiaries, depending on the product structure and policy terms.

Estate liquidity or shortfall cover is intended to help address costs that can arise in an estate when cash is not readily available, such as executor-related costs, administration expenses, tax exposure, or property-related transaction costs, depending on the actual product wording.

No. They are not automatically covered. Whether such costs are covered depends entirely on the actual product design, insurer terms, limits, exclusions and the way any future product is structured.

No, not automatically. Hospital bills, medical expenses before death, palliative care, frail care, and other end-of-life expenses should be treated as not covered unless a specific product expressly says otherwise.

No. Estate duty is not automatically covered. If any future product addresses estate-duty-related liquidity, it would depend on the actual structure, product wording, and the facts of the estate.

No. A calculator result, article, FAQ answer or interest form is not a quote.

Availability, cover amount, premiums, waiting periods where applicable, exclusions, medical evidence, claims process, and who gets paid are all matters that depend on the actual product and underwriting.

It gives a planning estimate based on what the user enters. It is there to help users think about liabilities, commitments, dependants and shortfalls. It is not a quote and it is not underwriting approval.

No. It is only a planning tool.

No. It is a planning tool to help users think about possible estate-related cash needs. It is not legal advice, tax advice or a product recommendation.

It uses user-entered information about assets, debts, likely estate costs, possible executor charges, property-related costs, tax exposure and available cash. It is presented as an estimate, not a promise.

No. A calculator result does not mean you are insured and does not guarantee that any future insurer would offer cover on those terms.

Yes. Actual costs can be materially higher or lower depending on the nature of the estate, the assets, tax position, legal costs, timing and the actual product structure.

Because the estate and the family do not always face the same problem. A family may need cash immediately, while the estate may need separate funds or liquidity for legal, tax, property or administrative reasons.

The first priorities are practical. Confirm the death through the appropriate medical process, contact the funeral undertaker or the relevant service provider, gather identity details, locate the will if possible, and begin the formal death-registration process.

That depends on the circumstances, but usually a funeral undertaker, close family, and any person identified as a key contact or executor are the first practical contacts. If the deceased had a WIAG Card or vault, the death-reporting process can also be started.

They will usually need the death certificate once issued, identity documents, marriage-related documents where relevant, the original will if there is one, and core estate-readiness information. Home Affairs issues the death certificate after the death has been registered.

A copy can still be useful, but the original signed will remains important. The service records where the original is kept.

That is one of the practical problems estate-readiness is meant to address. Family cash needs and estate cash needs should be thought about in advance because the estate process often does not produce immediate liquidity.

That is why emergency packet information matters. Medical aid details, doctor details and key contact information should be easy to locate without opening the whole vault.

A death is reported through the secure WIAG process, often starting from a QR code or card route. The reporter identifies themselves, uploads the required information, and the matter then goes through verification before any sensitive release takes place.

That may include the existence of a valid WIAG record, the identity and role of the reporter, the death certificate, matching information already on file, and any additional internal controls needed before releasing sensitive information.

WIAG uses layered access, verification, private storage, audit trails and role-based controls. We are careful and honest about security. We do not promise impossible security.

They should not be able to browse documents casually. Access is limited by role, workflow and purpose.

Access depends on your role settings, your instructions, the verification process, and internal controls. A key holder is not automatically a full-vault user.

No.

No.

The service keeps audit records of uploads, requests, views, downloads, approvals and releases, especially for sensitive information.

Yes. The service provides a process for updates, corrections and account-related requests, subject to legal retention needs where applicable.

Where there is a dispute, release of sensitive material may need to be paused or escalated for review depending on the nature of the disagreement and the applicable legal position.