The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Insurance

  • Insurance loses N50b to fake third party motor yearly

    Insurance loses N50b to fake third party motor yearly

    The insurance sector is losing over N50 billion to fake Third Party Motor Insurance annually, investigation by The Nation has revealed.

    This is going by the Federal Road Safety Commission’s (FRSC’s) recent report that 12 million registered vehicles, including private and commercial, ply the roads.

    Also, latest report from the Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA) showed that only three million vehicles are insured.

    Third Party Motor policy costs N5,000 for private saloons, sport utility  vehiles and Jeeps, while commercial vehicles owners pay N7,500.

    NIA Director-General Sunday Thomas said it was mandatory for motorists to have the policy before hiting the road.

    He said Section 38 of the National Insurance Act 2003 states that Third Party Motor Insurance was required as part of the minimum amount of auto cover one must have to carry on as a car owner. Penalties for non-compliance include a fine of up to N250,000 and, or one-year imprisonment.

    He disclosed that only three million  vehicles were insured in the country.

    ‘’Over 12 million are without valid insurance. Their lack of valid insurance is a huge loss to the industry. We are losing premium income annually,’’ he said.

    On the importance of Third Party Motor Insurance, chairman, Boff & Company Insurance Brokers Limited, Mr Babajide Olatunde-Agbeja, said: “If you have third party motor insurance, immediately you are involved in an accident, your insurer will pay third party claims to the tune of N1 million for a N5,000 premium.

    “So, if you hit somebody’s car from the rare, you need not to worry. Just say ‘I am sorry, it’s a mistake’ to the driver. Tell him, ‘this is my insurance cov er, my insurance broker will call you and fix it,’ simple and within a week, the damaged car will be repaired.

    “The massive loss incurred by the industry on yearly basis is saddening. This is because motorists have refused to obtain genuine insurance, but if the industry can get this huge fund, it will increase its contribution to GDP, have more funds to increase insurance awareness, engage in more CSR projects, among other beneficial projects,” he added.

  • Funeral rites for Insurance chief

    Funeral rites for Insurance chief

    Funeral rites for the Managing Director, Regency Alliance Insurance Plc, Mrs. Anuoluwapo Abosede Otegbeye (Nee Bamgbose), have been announced.

    A Service of Songs will hold tomorrow at Christ Anglican Church on 10 Okuta road, Bariga, by 5pm.

    A commendation service will hold on Thursday at the same venue by 10 am, while another Service of Songs will hold at BOT residence on Biyi Otegbeye Close, GRA Ilaro, by 5 pm same day.

    Burial will be on Friday at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Ilaro, by 10 am, while entertainment of guests will hold at Ashade Agunloye Pavilion, Ilaro.

    The deceased was born on March 26, 1939, and died on September 12.

    She was 77 years.

  • 10 things you didn’t know about insurance

    If you think insurance only protects you against fires and burglaries, you might just be wrong as there are a number of unexpected and financially painful occurrence in which you find yourself and didn’t know insurance could take care of.

    Here are 10 out of countless things insurance could offer that you are probably not aware of.

    •When you have a health insurance policy you are entitled to a broad range of free preventive care and screenings. Most plans also come with perks that don’t directly involve medical care, including help with weight loss and tobacco cessation. By taking advantage of these benefits, you can live a healthier life while maximizing the value of your health insurance.

    •Car insurance is a legal requirement. There’s no escaping the underlying fact that car insurance is a must if you are looking to driving a vehicle on the road. Insuring your car isn’t something you opt in or out of, it’s a legal obligation on the part of the vehicle owner or driver to ensure that they arrange the necessary cover and have it in place at all times.

    •Most home owners insurance does not cover natural disasters. Earthquakes are commonly excluded, for example. Check the terms of your policy to find out whether you have coverage for the natural disasters that occur most commonly in your area.

    •Home owner’s insurance policy could also serve other dependents and immediate family members too. If your child is at college, he or she may be protected under the terms of your policy. This means if his laptop is stolen in his dorm room, your homeowner’s insurance policy could potentially pick up the tab.

    •Fully comprehensive insurance isn’t always the most expensive policy these days. Despite the automatic assumption that fully comprehensive policies will typically set the policyholder back the most, financially-speaking, there are instances when this isn’t always the case. Irrespective of the basic cover afforded you by grabbing third party insurance packages, these products have witnessed significant increases over recent years, reflecting the popularity of them amongst younger and inexperienced drivers who by their very definition are statistically more likely to be involved in road accidents which in turn pushes up the overall premium prices.

    •Possibly, your downstairs neighbour plugs too many appliances into an outlet, setting her apartment on fire, and you have to stay in a hotel while repairs and cleaning are done, your renter’s insurance covers for that.

    •Your car is still covered if you lend it to someone. If you’re like millions of Nigerians, who occasionally lend their cars to friends, co-workers, or other people in their lives, there’s a good chance you’ve had at least the passing thought of, “what would happen if they get in an accident while driving my car? Would I have to pay out of pocket?” That concern is enough to make people worry about lending their cars to even those who are good, responsible driver. Fortunately, your car is covered even if you are not the one driving it. However, too many claims on your policy could result in higher premiums and if you only have basic coverage you will probably be left with any remaining expenses. That means that it’s a good idea to take your overall insurance situation into consideration before you pass off those keys.

    •You may be protected from deadbeat drivers. Hit-and-run drivers are almost universally scorned. There is simply no excuse for running away from your responsibility and driving away if you have been in an accident. Almost as bad is the driver who gets behind the wheel without insurance or without adequate insurance, thereby putting themselves and everyone else at risk.

  • Arik suspends operations over insurance renewal

    Arik suspends operations over insurance renewal

    • NCAA: we ‘ll hasten documentation

    Arik Air  has announced a temporary disruption of its operations, pending approval of aircraft documentation related to insurance renewal, its spokesman, Adebanji  Ola said on Tuesday.

    The airline said it was working round the clock to resolve the documentation which has been a challenge due to the long weekend holidays.

    He said: “At the present time, all flights of the airline have been cancelled for Tuesday, September 13 and the airline has stated that it would be getting in touch with passengers to provide an update on rescheduling of their flights. This situation is likely to continue for the next few days until such a time that NAICOM (National Insurance Commission) approves a waiver on a priority basis for the new insurance company to renew the policy.

    “All customers are kindly advised to contact Arik Air’s  Airport or City ticket offices or visit the airline’s Website  for further updates. Passengers are also advised to check with the airline regarding the status of their flights before proceeding to the airport.”

    He said Arik Air’s Group Chief Executive Officer  Dr. Michael Arumemi-Ikhide  advised and assure the public, its customers, stakeholders and partners that ‘we are fully committed to returning to our normal operations and minimise any unfortunate inconvenience to our passengers.

    “Where flights have been cancelled, the airline will notify passengers through SMS and in such cases, passengers will be accommodated on first available alternative flight as soon as normal flight operations resume.

    He said the Group CEO has apologised and appealed for the understanding of passengers while it works diligently to resume normal operations at the earliest.

    Meanwhile, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority ( NCAA) has assured that documentation approvals for carrier would be fast-tracked so that flight operations could resume.

    An official of the regulatory agency who declined to be named said it is working with the airline to ensure that the renewal of insurance is accelerated as soon as possible.

    A source however hinted that the new  local insurer for Arik-Unsure Insurance Company, has secured approval from NAICOM to enable the airline resume operations.

    The approval, it was learnt, was sequel to a waiver granted on a priority basis for the new insurance company to renew the policy.

    The source said two of Arik Air aircraft has been cleared and returned to operations yesterday on the Lagos-Port-Harcourt route.

    Lloyd of London are the re- insurer  for Arik Air aircraft.

    NCAA requres that airlines have a valid cover on any aircraft before it could be airborne.

  • Leadway, Total seal pact on third party motor insurance

    Leadway Assurance Company Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Total Nigeria Plc to sell third party motor vehicle insurance to the general public in some designated Total service stations across the country.

    The deal was signed in Lagos where the Executive Director, General Business, Leadway Assurance, Ms Adetola Adegbayi represented the Managing Director, Oye Hassan-Odukale and the Territorial Sales Manager (North), Total Nigeria Plc- Muftau Balogun represented the Managing Director, Total Nigeria Plc, Jean-Philippe Torres in Lagos.

    According to Ms Adegbayi, the agreement allows Leadway’s insurance products and services to be made available in some designated Total service stations across the country starting with 20 stations in Lagos.

    She stated that Leadway’s easy-to-use third party motor vehicle insurance recharge cards will not only be used as pick up centres for Leadway Assurance products but would also serve as collation centres for all insurance related issues such as claims processing.

    Leadway’s Executive Director, Finance and Systems Tunde Hassan-Odukale said as an innovation-driven market leader in the insurance industry, they are constantly seeking ways to make insurance products and services nearer, easily accessible and more convenient to customers.

    He added that they have developed their online infrastructure to provide real-time, online access and interaction for their clients.

    He said: “The partnership with Total reinforces that quest to further take insurance closer to Nigerians whilst affirming our commitment to superior service delivery. Indeed, with this partnership, our customers, who are also consumers of Total’s array of products and services, would reduce their commuting time and cost to procure high value insurance products such as the motor insurance, at a single location. The Nigerian insurance industry has been characterised by low market penetration and adoption resulting in the industry contributing less than one per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    Territorial Sales Manager (North), Total Nigeria Plc Muftau Balogun said: “We are proud of the partnership with Leadway Assurance, a dynamic organisation, who shares our values of integrity, innovation, and superior service delivery. This is an association of caring brands.

    “With this partnership, our outlets will become the first in our industry to have insurance products and services offered at the convenience of our customers from our service stations, he added.

  • ‘No Fighting’ campaign ‘ll deepen insurance’

    African Reinsurance Corporation (AfricaRe) ‘No Fighting’ campaign is to  sensitise the public on the benefits of insurance policies.

    Unveiling the campaign at its head office in Lagos, the firm’s Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Ken Aghoghovbia, said the campaign was imperative since many Nigerians still dìd not take insurance policies.

    He said in spite of Nigeria’s huge population, insurance penetration remained very low.

    According to him, while insurance penetration rate is 0.3 per cent in Nigeria, of about 12 million vehicles on the roads, only 4.3 million have genuine insurance certificates.

    Reiterating the corporations’ resolve to foster the development of the insurance and reinsurance industry in Africa, Aghoghovbia expressed the hope that the campaign would go a long way in educating Nigerians on the benefits of policies.

    “The campaign aims at developing an integrated behavioural change to enhance the effort made by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the Nigerian Insurance Association to bridge the knowledge, experience and perception gaps in the nation’s insurance market.

    “AfricaRe decided to invest in creating awareness about the insurance industry because there is a dearth of knowledge among the general populace,” he said.

  • Africa Re makes insurance, reinsurance awareness as part of CSR

    African reinsurance Corporation (Africa Re) has set for itself the development of the insurance and reinsurance industry in Africa as one of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, the deputy Managing Director, Ken Aghoghovbia has said.

    He made this known at a briefing  in Lagos. He said the CSR initiative has been branded “The Insurance Awareness Campaign.”

    He said they decided to adopt the campaign, following many uninsured lives, properties and businesses.

    Aghoghovbia said: “We have witnessed many children unable to complete their education following the death of their uninsured breadwinners. The Nigerian Insurance Association (NIA) reported that only 4.3 million vehicles have genuine motor insurance out of 12 million vehicles on the Nigerian road and this is validated by the number of fights between drivers in events of vehicle accidents. All this could have been avoided if the individuals were aware of the benefits of insurance. The extremely low insurance penetration rate of 0.3 per cent is not healthy for the growth of the Nigerian economy.

    “The corporation is well positioned to guarantee that insurers will fulfill their roles in African markets. This campaign aims at developing an integrated behavioural change to enhance the effort made by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the NIA to bridge the knowledge, experience and perception gaps in the Nigerian insurance market.

    “The campaign is set to correct the negative and prevalent perceptions plaguing the industry; drive penetration and density as well as grow insurance culture across the country, enlighten the public on credible insurance partners on how to get and enjoy the benefits of insurance in Nigeria. Africa Re has decided to invest in creating awareness about the insurance because we realise that there is a dearth of knowledge among then general populace.”

    He said that this is in spite of the fact that as a reinsurance company, they only deal with insurers/ reinsurers and not with the individual beneficiaries of insurance policies.

  • Staco Insurance grosses N6b premium

    The Staco Insurance Plc has recorded a gross premium income of N6.19 billion in its financial year 2015.

    Former Chairman of the company, Dere Otubu, made this known at the firm’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos.

    He said the company has appointed Turoti Samuel as the new chairman.

    He said the company’s net premium stood at N4.68 billion while profit before tax was N168.61 million.

    He noted that 2015 had challenges, which led to a decrease in revenue of 3.9 per cent from N5.96 billion in 2014 to N5.73 billion in the year under review.

    On Board changes, he said: “During the first quarter of this year, many non-executive directors left in line with the 2009 NAICOM Code of Corporate Governance.

    “During the first quarter of 2016, a significant number of non- executive directors resigned their appointments in line with the 2009 NAICOM Code of Corporate Governance. The director’s who resigned were Dere Otubu; Pius Plarewaju; Idaere Ogan; Babatunde Okoturo; Emmanusel Chiejina and Love Ojakovo while the new directors are Talabi Omotola; Alimson Olusegun; Turoti Samuel; Emore Helen Ese and Muhammad Sidi-Aliyu,” he said.

  • Govt increases insurance cover for PMBs

    The Federal Government has approved the upward review of the maximum deposit insurance coverage (MDIC) from N200,000 to N500,000 per depositor for Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs). It also approved the extension of Differential Premium Assessment System (DPAS) to them.

    The approval was granted by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun in a letter dated August 4 to the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).

    It emphasised the need for the Corporation to ensure that all the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), PMBs and Micro Finance Banks (MfBs) strictly adhere to sound risk management practices and entrench compliance to the CBN approved code of corporate governance standards.

    NDIC in a statement noted that its board is empowered to “periodically review the maximum deposit insurance coverage for licensed banks and other deposit taking financial institutions in accordance with changes in deposit structure, income levels and in line with global best practices”.

    The MDIC review, it said, “is carried out through studies and surveys and is aimed at ascertaining the adequacy or otherwise of the deposit insurance coverage level for insured institutions in Nigeria. The outcome of the most recent survey that was conducted in August, 2015 revealed the compelling need for the upward review of the current MDIC for the PMBs from N200,000 to N500,000 per depositor. The survey also revealed that the MDIC increase would cover 99 per cent of depositors of the PMBs in Nigeria.”

    The adoption of DPAS in assessing the yearly premium paid by PMBs the statement explained “will promote better risk management in the banks in line with international best practices.”

    Over 120 countries have adopted DPAS as an objective method of insurance premium pricing.

  • Govt plans automation of insurance premium

    Govt plans automation of insurance premium

    If plans by the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, to deplore the use of technology to monitor vehicles in the country succeeds, motorist will be automatically charged insurance premium for third party motor policy, The Nation has learnt.

    Commissioner for Insurance, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Mohammed Kari, told a gathering of insurers, brokers and agents in Abuja that the minister plans to constitute a body comprising the Commission, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigeria Customs Service to checkmate and control motorists’ activities.

    According to him, the minister believes in the power of technology and has asked that it be fully deployed to increase premium income in the industry.

    She hopes that more tax will be earned because a proper record of vehicles in the country would be ascertained.

    He said: “The minister has said she is constituting a body which will comprise of NAICOM, Federal Road Safety, Federal Inland Revenue and the Customs. By using the Bank Verification Number (BVN) technology, all vehicles in Nigeria will be registered to an individual.

    “She also believes that the tax money will help people know how to avoid use of 10 cars or whether they pay their taxes. Insurance will automatically be charged on vehicles because it will be identified by a number like the BVN. The motorist will automatically get a notice. Technology will assist us in all of these plans.”

    Kari further stated that NAICOM on its part, beyond providing leadership and a sane regulatory environment for insurance entities to operate, has continually introduced market developmental programmes and initiatives aimed at increasing penetration and assisting insurance institutions enhance their premium revenue generation and, by so doing, increase the industry contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    “In 2009, the Commission launched the  Market Development and Restructuring Initiatives (MDRI) programme. This is a medium term industry development plan designed by the Commission with focus on the enforcement of compulsory insurance products, increase insurance awareness, reduction in incidences of fake insures/insurances and increase agency reform.

    “This initiative was successfully launched in the six geo-political  zones and Abuja. The Commission also followed up with massive awareness campaign, roadshows and seminars again in all the zones of the country. These efforts were geared towards making the insurance institutions richer and better.

    “The Commission has also recently embarked on the sensitization of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government on the compelling need for adequate insurance of their assets. We have equally canvassed the engagement of insurance professionals to handle their insurances to ensure they procure proper insurance policies,” he added.