The Nation Newspaper

Category: Insurance

  • Goldlink gets new interim Board

    Goldlink Insurance Plc has announced a  change in its board and management as a result of the restructuring of the Interim Management Board by National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).

    A statement by the Head of Corporate Communications Unit, Adeola Adigun, said the Management headed by the Acting Managing Director, Mrs Funke Moore, has completed its mission of repositioning the company for capital raise; hence the restructuring and has ceased to be at the helm of affairs.

    This necessitated the appointment of Mr. Edore Kenneth Egbaran as  the new Managing Director, Mr. Nahim Abe Ibraheem, the Chairman of the Board with Messrs Olanrewaju Sulaimon, Adeyinka Olutungase, Farouk Lawal Yola and Mrs Tonbofa Ashimi as members of the Board.

  • Allianz Nigeria lays claim to best place to work

    Allianz Nigeria, a composite insurance company owned by the Allianz Group is the Best Company to work in 2019, the Executive Director, Owolabi Salami, has said.

    He said the photo taken by the company’s staff shows that the staff dress down to work not only on Friday but every day.

    He listed Flexi-hour, traditional attire, benefits and remuneration as part of the things that make Allianz Nigeria a strong contender for best workplace in 2019.

    He said:“This photo is not from a dress-down Friday at work. It is not a working holiday either. No, it’s a regular workday, a Monday actually. Surprised? Part of the dress code policy at Allianz Nigeria – a composite insurance company owned by the Allianz Group – allows employees to ‘use their best judgement when determining appropriate attire and appearance’. That’s right, they trust their employees to dress smart and dress right”.

    Three things that make Allianz Nigeria best workplace in 2019

     

    Flexi-hour

    Allianz Nigeria is the first and the only company in Nigeria to have this as a work policy – or at least, they are the only one we know. Employees can choose to resume as early as 7am or as late as 10am provided they put in the required 8 hours of work (plus a 1-hour lunch break) and voila! You’re done for the day. So if you resume by 7am, you can hit the close by 4pm and manage to beat the city traffic. There are, however, concerns about the abuse of such a policy. Might not some staff resume by 10am and close by 4pm?

    “We really don’t care. For us it is substance over form”, clarifies Owolabi Salami, Executive Director at Allianz Nigeria. “We trust our people to do right thing even when no one is watching, and for the past two years our people have made us absolutely proud of the decision to make flexible work hours a company policy”, he added.

     

    Traditional attire, everyday

    The company also has a very interesting dress code policy. The policy states simply that Ankara/wool/cotton attires are acceptable modes of dressing during the week. The Human Resources Manager, Ifeleke Aboyeji, says they want their people to ‘dress the culture’. This contributes greatly to the ambience of the workplace.Employees are free to don traditional attires that are both trendy and comfortable. “In my interactions with employees, I detect that people are generally happy about this flexibility in our dress culture”, she concludes.

     

    Benefits/Remuneration

    Allianz Nigeria may not boast the most robust incentive package out there. But as an employee puts it, ‘the timeliness of our monthly remuneration is as dependable as sunlight’. But why should this even be something to be highlighted. Many reputable companies owe their employees’ salaries for months in a row, in blatant violation of extant labour laws. As shocking as this sounds, it is the grave reality. With unemployment rate at 23percent, employers take undue liberties with the payment of benefits confident that their employees have nowhere to go. Allianz Nigeria has a standing policy of paying out monthly benefits on the same day each month. Where the day falls on a weekend or public holiday, payout is the working day immediately before. “In the final analysis, we make our living here”, argues Mrs Aboyeji “so we want to offer our people financial security and freedom in the knowledge that the reward for their labour stays sacred”, she added.

  • AFIG invests in NEM

    EM Insurance Plc, a leading insurance group in Nigeria, over the weekend announced that Advanced Finance and Investment Group (AFIG Funds), a leading African private equity fund manager has, through AFIG Fund II, completed an investment in the company.

    Group Managing Director of NEM Insurance, Mr. Tope Smart made this known in Lagos.

    According to him, the AFIG Funds invested in the company by acquiring 29.9 per cent of the company’s shares from some shareholders of the company.

    He disclosed that this transaction now makes AFIG Funds the largest shareholder in NEM, and marks the commencement of a strategic partnership between AFIG Funds and NEM, as the company embarks on its next growth phase as a top-tier player within the Nigerian insurance industry.

    He stated that NEM is a top-tier non-life insurance company which has been in operation in Nigeria for over 60 years, and more recently in Ghana.

    He said: “The company offers all classes of non-life insurance products to individuals and corporates in Nigeria, and has over the years become a household name. NEM has over the last decade built a solid record of service delivery excellence, superior financial performance including consistent profitability and healthy returns to its shareholders.

    “We are delighted to welcome AFIG Funds as a significant shareholder in NEM at such an exciting time in the company’s evolution.

    ‘This partnership with AFIG Funds is the outcome of several years of constructive engagement, as well as a thorough internal strategic process to identify and engage with the best long-term institutional partner for our company.’

  • NIA gets NAICOM’s, CBN’s nod to digitalise marine certificate

    The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have granted approval to the Nigerian Insurers Association, (NIA) to digitalise marine insurance certificate, Chairman of the association, Mr Tope Smart has said.

    The NIA Chairman, who is also the Group Managing Director of NEM Insurance Plc, spoke during an interactive session with journalists in Lagos.

    Smart said the development will generate more income for the industry and contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    He said: “The initiative will also help the industry to recover all lost income prior the approval. The industry is also adopting the use of technology to drive insurance business. Technology plays vital role in the growth of any business and economy.

    “The association will this year, collaborate with other industry bodies to grow the market and improve the industry. The bodies will speak in one voice and ensure people-oriented policies are introduced to promote the industry and the economy.

    “We are optimistic that this year will be better and the industry will grow. The industry has been responsive in meeting genuine claims responsibilities and will continue to honour the payment of all genuine claims.”

    The Director-General, Mrs. Yetunde Ilori, noted that the industry is working assiduously on the industry’s unified platform for the sales of third party motor insurance code titled, Nigerian Insurance Industry Portal (NIIP).

    She added that the portal will be launched before the association’s current chairman leaves office.

    She said a total number of 2.5 million vehicles are actively captured on the Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID), while the actual number of upload on the platform is over three million.

  • Leadway facilitates capacity building for reporters

    Leadway Assurance has announced that the Leadway Journalism Training initiative for capacity building will hold on Wednesday, January 23.

    Over 40 journalists covering the Insurance and Pensions Beats for print, electronic and online media platforms in the country are expected at the one-day capacity building and re-tooling workshop scheduled to hold at the Leadway Academy in Lagos.

    Head, Corporate Communications/Services, Leadway Assurance, Ms. Olubunmi Adeleye, said the edition of the training would focus on critical areas of the insurance sector such as endowment plans, maintaining operational standards in insurance as well as other areas relating to pensions.

    Adeleye said the organisation of the quarterly training initiative by Leadway Assurance is in recognition of the need for journalists to be abreast of latest industry trends both locally and globally given their important role as purveyors of news and information that the insuring and un-insuring public depend on to form opinions about insurance and the economy.

     

  • NIA launches USSD code to eliminate fake motor policies

    To eliminate fake motor insurance certificates, cancel the parallel market and  bring insurance services closer to the people, the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has launched the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) code *565*11#

    With this code, motorists can now verify the authenticity of their insurance policies on a mobile phone without internet connection.

    Speaking at the luncheon, NIA Chairman, Mr. Tope Smart recalled that in 2010, the association took a major step towards eliminating fake insurance certificates in the market through the inception of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID).

    He stated that the database went live in 2011 and insurance policies obtained by motorists could be checked real time online on the internet and through dedicated hand held devices.

    He said the objective of the NIID was to serve as an authentic database of the  industry data providing qualitative statistics/analysis of the industry data; as vehicle for easy verification of genuine insurance certificates by all stakeholders; and to reduce incidences of fraudulent insurance transactions especially for motor and marine policies.

    He noted that the industry has continued to reap the benefits of the scheme.

    He explained that prior to the establishment of the platform, cloning and faking of insurance certificates was a thriving business but the establishment of the database has assisted the industry in reducing the incidents of fake insurance certificates in the market.

    He said there were over three million vehicle details on the platform.

    He further stated that the platform has been enhanced to include Stolen Vehicles and Claims Reporting modules in response to the challenges thrown up by actions of suspected fraudsters that made multiple claims with the intent to defraud the industry over the last few years.

    He, however, said that the NIID platform had been operational nationwide, but with challenges in verification in areas with poor internet coverage.

    He said: “Verification of motor certificates through the dedicated devices became highly impaired due to the vicissitudes of internet operations in the hinterlands. This led to the introduction of the USSD technology. The USSD is a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) technology used to send text between a mobile phone and an application programme in the network.

    “It works independent of internet connectivity. In this instance, any mobile phone, not necessarily a smartphone would communicate with the NIID system to retrieve policy status whenever required.

    ‘’It is hoped that with the USSD, we would have fully overcome the problems associated with the dedicated devices as it guarantees uninterrupted service throughout the country and on all networks.

    ‘’Our existing and prospective customers now have the opportunity to confirm the genuineness of their respective policies at the time of purchase to avoid any embarrassment should claim occur.”

    While acknowledging their partners, Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc and Courteville Business Solutions Plc for their support, he said the success recorded so far cannot be complete without the co-operation and support received from the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Vehicle Inspection Services (VIS) of various states, Nigeria Police Force (NPF), National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) and other stakeholders in the industry.

  • Wapic gets Ombudsman

    Wapic Insurance Plc has opened an Insurance Ombudsman Desk to ensure a seamless and smooth service for customers, Managing Director, Mrs Yinka Adekoya has said.

    She spoke during the launch over the weekend at the company’s Head Office in Lagos.

    She said while the notion of having an Ombudsman desk was not new in the Western-developed society and some parts of Africa, including Nigeria, this is the first time an insurance company would launch its very own Ombudsman desk.

    She pointed out that the desk is independent, hence, its resolutions cannot be manipulated.

    She also noted that the desk reports to the management and board and that it has been empowered to handle all claims related cases, irrespective of the amount involved.

    She stated that the company wants to improve customer experience, from the point of purchasing an insurance product to the point where the risk crystalises.

    She explained that an Ombudsman is basically an officer(s), who is responsible for informally investigating and mediating fair settlement of commercial dispute between a company and its customers or companies through an Alternative Dispute resolution-driven process.

    She stressed that the Ombudsman would usually engage the parties informally with a view to resolving the dispute timeously, encourage business continuity and improve customer experience, she said.

    Bringing this home – in the insurance sector, the Ombudsman will be responsible for setting disputes that arise as a result of claims settlement, she added.

    She said: “When a customer’s risk has crystalised and they have issues with the claims settlement process or the claims amount that is payable, the Ombudsman will step in to investigate the customers concerns and mediate a fair settlement to ensure both parties (the Underwriter and the customer) are satisfied with the outcome.

    “We at Wapic are very excited to be launching this initiative. It is a feat for us as an organisation and this also buttresses our vision which is to transform and illuminate the insurance industry for the benefit of our customers and stakeholders as well as our mission which is leading in all that is worthy. Wapic has decided to launch the Ombudsman desk publicly to inform our customers of the best medium to channel their disputes and also to build confidence in our current and prospective customers about our services and ability to handle their expectations. Our customers should know that we are continuously transparent in our business operations, our goal is to continue to strengthen business relationships”.

    The Executive Director, Bode Ojeniyi, said the pilot scheme of the initiative started in 2018 and that from then to date, over 57 cases have been resolved amicably.

    He highlighted the benefits of the desk to include, speedy resolution of customers complaints; strengthening business relationship with customers after resolution of disputes; serves as a channel of feedback from customers; identification of potential risks and problems areas in business relationship with customers and advise accordingly. The risk of lawsuits against the company are minimised, as disputes are resolved internally and amicably, among others.

  • Linkage Assurance optimistic about 2019

    Underwriting firm, Linkage Assurance Plc, is positive that its business in  2019  will witness efficiency in operation, quality service delivery to customers and increased value for its shareholders.

    The underwriter believes that with increased investment in technological infrastructure as well as quality manpower, which the company has attracted in the outgoing year, the future is bright for the company.

    The Managing Director/CEO of the company, Daniel Braie, made the remark at the company’s 2018 End of the Year Dinner and Awards at Lekki Coliseum, Victoria Island, Lagos.

    Braie, who praised members of staff for their contributions in 2018, said the company was able to overcome the challenges in the business environment because of the commitment of the workers.

    He said: “The business environment was very challenging in 2018 to the extent that companies were having difficulties but with God on our side, we did not perform badly.

    “We have been able to attract quality staff, better infrastructure to enable us deliver quality service in the coming year, and I am hopeful that we will do better in 2019.”

    Braie, however, charged the workers to redouble their efforts to sustain the growth achieved so far and the targets it has set for itself as a company.

    The company also rewarded its staff who showed outstanding performance in their different departments last year.

  • CIIN chief urges members to uphold ethics, values

    Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) members must embrace ethics of their profession and best practices in their business dealings this year, the President, Eddie Efekoha, has said.

    Efekoha, in his New Year’s message to CIIN members, urged them to uphold the institute’s ethics and values

    He stated that the year might throw up a lot of challenges as it is an election year, noting that this notwithstanding,it  promises to be a lot of risk elements for insurance outfits to take advantage of.

    He advised members to seize the initiative and explore and exploit all areas of business generation that the year will present in various forms.

    He added that creativity must come to the fore in offering products and services to their target audience.

    He said: “The institute belongs to all of us who wear the identity of insurance professionals. It is my hope that as stakeholders, we will continue to lift the institute higher by actively participating to make its programmes and activities in 2019 more successful than the previous year.

    “We have entered a new year, 2019, that is so special to the institute. In 2019, the institute will be 60. It is a year of reflection on the institute’s journey through the years and its evolution as the premier professional body in Nigeria.  As a body, we are committed to the growth of the insurance industry and will not relent in our contribution to promote the industry agenda.

    “As you will recall, the theme of my Presidency is focused on: Advancing Insurance Education and Professionalism.’’

  • Stakeholders seek paradigm shift

    The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) must enforce discipline on recalcitrant firms and promoteMarket Development and Restructuring Initiative (MDRI), among others, to ensure the growth of the sector this year, Omobola Tolu-Kusimo writes.

    With the desperate need for paradigm shift in insurance business, the regulator,  National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and operators are at crossroads on what to do.

    They are at a dilemma on how to grow the sector, deepen its penetration, promote and protect policy holders. They are also at a loss on how to facilitate access to insurance and growth strategy that identifies and develops new market segments for products, targeting non-buying customers in targeted segments, as well as new segments with the aim of growing the sector’s premium generation; and enhance its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    This is coming on the heels of the cancellation of the two major policies, the Tier-Based Minimum Solvency Capital (TBMSC) and the State Insurance Producer (SIP) by NAICOM. The polices ARE aimed at growing the sector.

    There are divergent views on how to push the industry to, at least, N1trillion sector, a goal they have pursued with the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative (MDRI)  initiative since 2009.

    A key goal of NAICOM’s financial inclusion strategy is to increase insurance penetration to 40 per cent by 2020, however, insurance penetration and density have remained low.

    Industry observers are, therefore, wondering what can happen in the sector this year to make a difference.

    On the other hand, experts said cognitive steps should be taken by NAICOM and individual operators.

    For them, there must be a shift from how businesses are done by operators and how the regulator handles the industry.

    Experts’ views

    A major stakeholder in the sector has advised NAICOM to focus its energy on discipline as it is a major tool needed to bring the industry to the right path.

    He urged the regulator to live up to its responsibility and withdraw licenses of firms  not paying genuine claims in the industry.

    He described the cancelled recapitalisation exercise as a waste of time, noting that if the commission ask insurers to recapitalise 10 times, some will still not pay claims.

    NAICOM, he said, should also renew its focus on other initiatives of the industry, especially the MDRI and enforce the policy.

    He noted that the regulator and operators should come together and promote the six compulsory insurance products, which include Motor Third Party, Group Life, Professional Indemnity, Builders’/Occupiers’ Liability and Public Building Liability Insurances, pointing out that they should also promote micro insurance, Takaful insurance products and industry rebranding, among others.

    The industry, according to him, has been plagued by a negative image among consumers due to an impression that insurers do not pay claims, low levels of awareness, and lack of tailored products, adding that the regulator should highlight them as key concerns and work towards improving consumer confidence and curb malpractices in the industry.

    He said: “The regulator should eliminate unethical practices and withdraw licenses of recalcitrant companies. The cancelled recapitalisation exercise is a waste of time. If the commission ask insurers to recapitalise 10 times, those who will not pay claims will not pay.

    “So why not take actions by suspending their licenses. If you suspend some of them, others will sit up. There is need for NAICOM to change its strategy. No company want its name mentioned in the news as an errant company and they will do anything to avoid it from happening.

    “The problem of the industry is failure of insurance companies to settle claims, unhealthy competition among operators, low awareness, low level of financial literacy, among others.”

    Deputy Commissioner for Insurance, Sunday Thomas lamented the unhealthy and unethical practices among operators. He spoke during a workshop on “End of Year Sector Review/Projection 2019”, organised by NAICOM for Insurance and Pension Corespondents in Lagos.

    According to him, rate cutting is a development that is hurting the industry as it affects premium income. “Rate cutting is a regrettable act that must be addressed to increase insurance contribution to the GDP. There was a point in this market when 10 per cent for comprehensive insurance was sacrosanct, but later, it came down to five per cent and that became the standard. But it got to a point that some operators were charging as low as one per cent. Also, there was a point that third party was N5, 000 and it also came to a point where people were charging N1,000 and the market was producing N200 million premium income from this business. If they decide to charge N5000, what is the market likely to produce?

    “This challenge must be addressed by insurers to increase the stake of the industry to pay genuine claims as and when due because when a risk is underpriced, it affects the ability to promptly pay claims,” he said.

    The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) Chairman, Mr. Tope Smart said the nation’s economy has been projected to expand by about 2.5 per cent in 2019, promising that insurance industry will take advantage of this expected growth.

    “We have figures of the growth of about 20 per cent when you compare the figure for 2017 and 2018 and I hope 2019 will be better. By the time we have the end of the year result, we will be having what I call a very positive result. The industry will continue to pioritise claims settlement and both regulator and operators are working together to put insurance companies on their toes to pay genuine claims through NIA and NAICOM complaint bureaus,” Smart, who is also NEM Insurance Plc Managing Director/CEO, pointed out.

    NSIA Insurance Limited Managing Director, Mrs. Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu said insurance in 2018 grew significantly in terms of the quality of products insurers rolled out, the quality of channels of distribution, the quality of people they engaged and the commitment of insurers to grow the people, thereby, increasing insurance penetration in the country.

    She said: “If we can push all of these over and over in 2019, I have no doubt at all that penetration will increase and premium will rise also. Today, the industry is paying better salary and so, people are better; operators study more than any other industry I have engaged with, they are dedicated to writing examinations, attending seminars, conferences and workshops. They want to be heard and an insurance person wants to be heard intelligently.

    “It is important for the average Nigerians or even the so called below average families to insure their risks with insurance companies.”

    Industry performance

    The Commissioner for Insurance, Mohammed Kari said the industry has a total premium value of N376 billion in 2017 with less than 1 per cent of Nigerians under insurance cover.

    “In the second quarter of 2018, the insurance sector recorded growth by 6.07 per cent. The sector grew by 3.49 per cent in nominal terms year on year, with a growth rate for the financial sector at 3.01 per cent for the period.

    “Insurance sector contribution to Nigeria’s GDP is 0.4 per cent. Also, the contribution of finance and insurance sector to the real GDP totaled 3.31 per cent, lower slightly than the contribution of 3.32 per cent recorded in the second quarter of 2017, and lower than 3.55 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter.”

    Industry’s initiatives and their downsides MDRI

    The Commission introduced the MDRI in 2009, among other initiatives, to change the industry’s narratives. It was expected that at the end of the implementation of the MDRI’s first phase, which was to end in 2012, the following would have been achieved: Gross Premium Income (GPI) would have grown from N164.50 billion to N1 trillion; Insurance contribution to GDP would have grown from 0.72 per cent to 3.0 per cent; Premium per capita, from N825.00 to N7,500 and; Insurance gap would be reduced from 94 per cent to seven per cent.

    Ten years after, the industry has not achieved the MDRI goals and it is, indeed, far from being achieved.

    Compulsory insurance

    Kari said NAICOM launched the first phase of MDRI in 2009 to among others create awareness on the existence of these classes of insurance and educate the public on the benefits of compulsory insurance to the individual and the Nigerian economy. The Commission did so much in this regard across the six geo-political zones in the country.

    He said not much could have be achieved in the area of enforcement by officers and men of relevant Federal agencies.

    “The various organs to drive the enforcement are not knowledgeable of the products or laws they are meant to enforce. On the other hand, enforcement would become easier if individuals and entities meant to consume these products are made aware of the benefits inherent in the consumption of these products. There is no doubt that compliance with the laws on compulsory insurance will go a long way to mitigate the adverse exposure to disaster by individuals with access to public places.

    “The beneficial importance of compulsory insurance is evident in all sphere of live as it guarantees a form of protection and compensation to victims, provided that they are insured, hence they do not have to bear huge financial burden.  It also serves as a form of social assistance for the vulnerable people in the society. To the economy, the government would not have to bear the burden alone during catastrophic events such as natural disaster, fire accident thereby saving the government money which can be channeled to augmenting the needs of the citizenry, providing infrastructures and creating employment, among others.

    “But the level of compliance with compulsory insurance in the country is still very low. We are working on how to enforce these products towards the attainment of a higher level of compliance.”

    Takaful insurance

    The Commissioner stressed that Takaful is both ethical financing and cooperative risk protection methods that are superior alternatives, because they reinvigorate human capital, solidarity, emphasise dignity, community self-help and economic self-development, to generate manifold benefits, which appeal not only to Muslims but all. “I encourage the people of Kano to embrace it for their protection against risks,” he said.

    The Takaful insurance initiative by NAICOM, he explained, was to complement the efforts of the Financial System Strategy 2020 (FSS2020) as part of the Financial Inclusion initiative aimed at reaching the larger percentage of Nigerians that are unreached and financially excluded.