The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Insurance

  • CBN to banks: no to insurance business

    CBN to banks: no to insurance business

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday ordered banks not to conduct insurance businesses, but to focus on their core functions.

    Its Director, Banking Supervision, Mrs. Tokunbo Martins gave the directive in a circular to banks and other stakeholders.

    She specified that banks shall not engage in any other model of bancassurance other than that permitted under these guidelines and for which approval has been obtained from the CBN.

    “In the light of developments and the need to ensure synergy in the financial system, the CBN in exercise of its power under Section 33(1)(b) of the CBN Act 2007 and the provision of Part 2, Section 3, Item (l) of the CBN Scope, Conditions & Minimum Standards for Commercial Banks Regulations No. 01, 2010 has considered it necessary to issue these guidelines on Bancassurance,” she said. Part of the new guidelines, she said is that banks shall not offer banking products that incorporate insurance features. Banks shall not offer free premium payments as a feature of any of their products.

    The lenders she added,  shall not provide the bancassurance products in a manner that contravenes these guidelines or any other statutory provision or law that applies to insurance products and services. The referral model of bancassurance arrangement between a bank and an insurance company shall not be valid without an executed Bancassurance Agreement.

  • Police insurance premium

    •We can’t get the best from the cops when govt keeps delaying payment 

    We are astonished that a mountain is being made out of the Federal Government embarking on the needful by setting aside N3.5bn as insurance premium for the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for the 2015 financial period. More outrageous is the fact that the newly approved premium expected to be paid to Custodian and Allied Insurance and 21 other insurance firms as underwriters for the police in 2015 had expired since December, last year.

    This is despite the fact that the underwriters had long sent reminder letter about the expiry date of the insurance policy to relevant ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of government. Yet, the MDAs have been apathetic despite their knowing that insurance companies, as provided by law, run a policy of ‘no premium, no cover’. The Insurance Act 2003, section 50 is explicit: “The receipt of an insurance premium shall be a condition precedent to a valid contract of insurance and there shall be no cover in respect of an insurance risk unless the premium is paid in advance.”

    The concerned authorities need to be asked about the fate of policemen faced with misfortunes in the intervening period of premium default for 2015 so far, in view of the volatile security situation in the country. Equally worthy of note is the observation that the police premium for 2014 is reportedly the same as 2015. The question: If premium is determined by claims made by the insured in the covered years, why is it that police premium has remained static despite reported increase in the number of incidents leading to more claims from the underwriters? Is the 2015 police insurance premium officially assumed or based on policy advice from the underwriters that are aware of the consequences of under-insurance when in the long or short run, the need for claims arises?

    We are aware of the demand for enormous insurance claims from underwriters by widows and dependants of slain police and other paramilitary men and officers engaged in battles with the Boko Haram insurgents in the north east and others in the line of duty in other parts of the country.

    The figures purportedly sent by the underwriters and the National Insurance Commission in September 2013 to the  office of Accountant-General of the Federation and the Federal Ministry of Finance reportedly showed that a significant number of men of the armed forces and police were killed on duty.

    For instance, between January and June, 2013, claims of above N1.5billion were recorded from men that were killed on duty alone, without those that died from other causes. The reason for the static premium figures remains scary.

    We are also aware of provision for Group Life Insurance Cover under the Pension Reform Act which is meant to provide financial compensation to dependants/relatives of an insured worker who dies while still in service. But since the NPF gained its autonomy over its insurance matters and equally got separated from the civil service and other forces in 2013, we expect a better coordinated structure for all they do; something that is a far cry from its shoddy handling by the office of the secretary to government of the federation. This is today not the situation.

    It is sad that the nation is still grappling with how to sort out police insurance premium in an age and time when such an issue should be taken as given. It is equally disheartening to know that the same police that governments unleash on the society just to perpetuate themselves in power are not well taken care of. If the government is genuine and sincere about building a committed police institution, the police should be insured as a matter of law, and not as an act of favour.

  • NAICOM demands claims register from insurance CEOs

    The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has urged Chief Executives Officers (CEOs) of the 59  insurance companies to furnish it with all outstanding claims in their registers.

    The order, which took effect from January 20, the regulator said, is to protect insurance policy holders and end the persistent bad press the industry is getting on unsettled claims.

    This was made known to the CEOs in a circular dated January 20, 2015, titled: ‘Outstanding claims,’ signed by NAICOM’s Deputy Commissioner, Technical, Mohammed Kari.

    He warned that the Commission reserves the right to verify all information supplied, adding that any variance found would not be condoned and would attract sanctions as provided by the law.

    The new requirement is a demonstration of NAICOM to end the unfortunate incidence of unsettled claims which is negatively impacting the Commission’s quest to deepen insurance penetration and trust, Kari said.

    The circular reads: “As part of our statutory function to protect policy holders’, and the persistent bad publicity the Nigeria Insurance Industry is getting on the matter of unsettled claims, the Commission is once more determined to bring to an end, the unfortunate scenario which is negatively impacting our quest to deepen insurance penetration and trust.

    “Consequently you are required; within four weeks from the date of this circular; to furnish the Commission with all the outstanding claims in the register of your company which includes, Name of Insured or Claimant; Policy number; Claim number; Date of Loss of Incident; Date of report; Quantum or Estimate and Reasons why the claim is still outstanding.

    “The information should be entered  into NAICOM website and a signed hard copy sent to the Office of the Commissioner for Insurance. Be reminded that the Commission reserves the right to verify all information supplied and any variance found would not be condoned and would attract full regulatory sanctions as provided by the law,” it noted.

  • Insurance boss mentors Delta students

    The Group Managing Director (GMD), Royal Exchange Plc, Mr Chike Mokwunye, has met with members of the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) chapter of the National Association of Delta State Students to boost their leadership and entrepreneurial skills.

    The interactive session, which was also aimed at opening the eyes of the students to investment in insurance, was attended by the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the organisation, Mr Philip Ashinze, and Acting Group Head of the firm’s Corporate Communication, Mr Wilson Okon-Essien.

    Mokwunye described the meeting as a welcome development, praising the students’ zeal to learn investment tips.

    On insurance and investment, Mokwunye said insurance investment would guarantee students’ future against unforeseen circumstance.

    He said: “As students, you should be able to take education, health and life insurance as no one is guarantee of unforeseen circumstance. Despite the high rate of unemployment in the country, you can start still create something that will give you monetary value before you graduate.”

    Mokwunye advised the students to learn vocations in addition to their academic pursuits, noting that vocational skills would help them discover their entrepreneurial abilities. He charged the students to remain committed, focused and dedicated to their studies and turn away from worldly things that could distract them from attaining their dream.

    The highpoint of the session was the induction of Mokwunye as a grand mentor to the association. The President of the association, Mark Orgu, said Mokwunye was made the association’s mentor because of his passion for youth development and his successful leadership at the insurance company.

  • Why insurance is hard sell in Nigeria

    Why insurance is hard sell in Nigeria

    Concerted efforts in different quarters to get Nigerians to appreciate the numerous benefits inherent in insurance policies seem not to have achieved much as a recent survey showed that over 86 million Nigerians don’t have any form of insurance cover, reports Ibrahim  Apekhade  Yusuf

    INSURANCE business remains a hard sell in Nigeria today. This unpalatable news, according to industry stakeholders, is definitely not music in the ears of insurance companies and allied stakeholders, given the fact that the industry has been in existence in the country close to a century.

    Although the desirability of insurance or otherwise has always been a hotly debated issue, a new study does appear to have driven the message home: more Nigerians won’t and don’t intend to take up any form of insurance cover if given the choice.

    Outcome of new study

    About 86.6 million Nigerians have no form of insurance cover, the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria has said.

    The President, CIIN, Mr. Bola Temowo, said this was the outcome of a recent research.

    He spoke at the institute’s annual seminar in Benin, Edo State, according to a statement obtained recently.

    “Available records indicate that 86.6 million Nigerians have no form of insurance, while 1.3 million adults, representing 1.5 per cent of the entire Nigerian adult population, maintain some category of formal insurance cover,” he said.

    More damning verdicts

    While the jury is still out contesting the veracity or otherwise of the survey which has shown that the nation is probably recording a recurring decimal in the insurance sub-sector as a result of diminishing patronage, a recent survey by NOIPolls has further indicated that nine out of 10 Nigerians don’t have any form of insurance.

    According to the survey, among those that have 63 percent have vehicle/car insurance, 20 percent have life insurance, 17 percent have property insurance, 16 percent have health insurance and 16 percent have fire, burglary and travel insurance.

    Also, a 2012 survey by Enhancing Financial Inclusion & Access (EFInA) showed that Nigerians are not insured against the most vulnerable risks: life, health and agriculture. Death and ill-health, the top two risks with an economic impact, are also the most widely experienced according to the body.

    The EFInA survey revealed that most Nigerians don’t know where the closest insurance company, broker or agent is located and that users of insurance have the highest level of dissatisfaction with providers of financial services.

    Why there is growing apathy for insurance

    It is anybody’s guess why there is growing apathy for insurance by Nigerians.

    While giving plausible explanations as to why many Nigerians don’t consider acquiring an insurance cover as a priority, Auwalu-Muktari, the Group Executive Director, Royal Exchange Plc, during an interactive session with some journalists in Lagos recently, said a number of factors were responsible for the growing apathy towards insurance.

    The major hiccup responsible for the growing apathy for insurance, Muktari said, is the low level of disposable income.

    “The only problem we see in the Nigerian market is that per capita income of the people is very low and people tend not to take insurance as a priority against other things related to them,” he said.

    He, however, said it was heartening to note that the federal government has made group life insurance compulsory for all employers of labour with a minimum of five employees and there has been a turnaround in the fortunes of that class of the insurance business.

    “I believe with the improvement in income regulation and other things, many people will come to take insurance and gradually we will get an increased participation by the insuring public in the country.

    “Again, with the awareness campaign being embarked upon by the regulator, the Nigerian Insurers Association and some industry players like Royal Exchange that are trying to improve the insurance awareness and visibility, showcasing the need for individuals to be protected and have life insurance cover for their own benefit and the benefits of members of their family in case of death, I believe in the next five years, there will be a turnaround in the way and manner people take up life insurance in Nigeria.

    “With the coming of retail businesses set up by the various underwriters and microinsurance, this awareness will get to the common man at the grassroots and they will embrace insurance as a way of life. Despite the low per capital income, there should be an increase in the rate at which people patronise the insurance industry.”

    What NAICOM is doing

    To revamp the insurance sector, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) had in time past come up with a number of measures, including raising the capital base of insurance companies in line with current economic realities.

    Commenting on the different initiatives by the NAICOM, which is the apex body regulating the sector, Mr. Yekeen Adullahi, a broker with Leadway Assurance Plc, said the commission under the headship of Fola Daniel has not done badly thus far.

    “NAICOM is currently doing very well. The commission has been coming up with good regulations that are moving the industry forward. All that is required is continuous cooperation among the members of the Nigerian Insurers Association so that we can be united and be able to turnaround the image and fortunes of the insurance industry in Nigeria,” he said.

    Besides, NAICOM, The Nation learnt, also introduced the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative (MDRI), retail insurance, microinsurance, compulsory insurance and others. Corroborating this, Muktari said: “There are lots of things being done to make the people aware of what they stand to gain by taking insurance. It is not something that will automatically impact on the industry immediately, but, over time, the impacts will be felt.

    “The MDRI revolution has been on ground for about three years now, and in the next few years, all these things would have come to pass as people will now have more knowledge about insurance. The industry is also trying to create more insurance awareness through advert placement and by sending people to the grassroots.”

    In line with the Insurance Act 2003, NAICOM introduced the “no premium, no cover”, all aimed at not just improvement in the industry but to achieve integrity and quality of income generated by the industry.

    Other institutional efforts to expand insurance reach

    A number of interventions have been put in place to help raise awareness about insurance in recent times, one of which are the pet project of Miss. Funmilola Ogunsola, winner of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) Beauty Pageant for 2014/2015.

    Speaking during the grand finale of her pet project tagged: ‘Teens for insurance’, the beauty queen highlighted the importance of insurance, lamenting that less than 1% of people in the country is being insured. Ogunsola explained that the project was geared towards sensitising secondary school students across the country on the need to be insured.

    She further explained that an online essay competition, titled: ‘The Significant role of insurance to the development of an economy’, was organised to create awareness for insurance. “We don’t have up to 1% insurance penetration in Nigeria and this project was out of the desire to reach young people,” she said. “I must say that I feel very glad with the results recorded. The entries for the essay competition were mind-blowing, so much that it was really difficult for my team to decide an eventual winner.

    “I really hope that parents embrace the benefits of insurance and secure these kids’ future as soon as they can.”

    Seun Banwo, a member of the CIIN, who also spoke at the event, said the initiative was aimed at making youths realise the importance of insurance.

    He also commended the federal government for approving insurance as a subject at the secondary school level. “What Funmi has done with this initiative is to attract the younger generation to insurance, because insurance has a very low penetration in Nigeria,” he said.

    “Thankfully, the federal government has just approved that insurance be a subject to be taken during the senior school exams and to be taught at senior secondary school level.

    “We hope that in the next few years, insurance would have moved up from the 1% awareness rate it has presently, to a much higher level.”

    Light at the end of the tunnel

    Temowo is optimistic that judging by the current record of Nigeria’s insuring population; such would receive a boost and improve the industry’s profile in global ranking.

    According to him, the federal government also envisions a fast growing insurance industry that will contribute substantially to making the nation’s economy one of the 20 largest markets in the world by the year 2020.

    Temowo said there was a need to improve the industry’s marketing machinery and develop an action plan for actualising the financial inclusion strategy in the delivery of insurance products and services to the critical mass, comprising the low income earners.

    He said the CIIN would focus on the maximisation of existing and emerging channels of distribution to deepen insurance penetration.

    “The significance of insurance in the life of our nation cannot be over emphasised. These trying times are fraught with several risk factors for both individuals and corporate bodies. As risk managers, it behooves us to increase the tempo of our campaigns for insurance awareness in order to get more Nigerians to embrace insurance with minimal compulsion,” he said.

    He said the CIIN had continued to explore all platforms of propagating insurance education and promoting general financial literacy.

     “Our training and retraining programmes are being intensified, while creating new channels for capturing the younger generation and ensuring that they embrace insurance consciously as a course of study,” he said.

    For this reason, Temowo said the institute sponsored the production of an insurance textbook for secondary schools and had commenced the donation of copies of the book to over 2,000 public secondary schools in the country through the state Ministries of Education.

    The institute, he added, also acknowledged the dearth of insurance teachers in schools and had embarked on a train-the-trainer project in order to equip the teachers with the minimal skills required for teaching the subject.

    He said this had reinforced the inclusion of insurance as a course of study in secondary schools by the federal government.

    Temowo said, “The campaign for insurance awareness has become the collective concern of the entire insurance industry. The Insurance Industry Consultative Council, the body comprising all arms of the industry, has also taken positive steps towards sensitising government agencies on the pivotal role of insurance in nationhood.”

    The CIIN boss said the council of the institute had also adopted measures geared towards involving all stakeholders in the campaign.

    He said it had recently been appealing to insurance institutions to adopt a secondary or tertiary institution close to them and support such institutions with their employees as volunteer teachers who would take time off their official schedule to teach insurance courses in the schools.

  • ‘Review Health Insurance Law’

    A call has been made for the review of the law establishing the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to enable Nigerians benefit from it.

    National President, of Healthcare Providers Association of Nigeria (HCPAN) Dr Adenike Olaniba,  said though the scheme is commendable, “the enabling law that brought it into existence is limiting more Nigerians from having any form of health insurance coverage.”

    She spoke during the association’s 10th  anniversary in Lagos.

    According to her, there is a clause in the law that established the scheme that makes it optional for Nigerians to have health insurance.

    Dr Olaniba said: “We believe that the clause should be reviewed for it will create an avenue for all Nigerians to apply for health insurance. If reviewed, every Nigerian will have a form of health insurance coverage. About 96 percent of unreached Nigerians are in the informal sector.

    “As we are agitating for the uploading of all facilities in Nigeria unto the scheme, we also point out that the N400 Capitation under Mobile insurance is not acceptable. We should maintain the status quo of N750 per enrollees, in the face of fuel increament and other factors.”

    She said members want the decentralisation of both  certification and inspection of facilities. Because some facilities, though inspected have not been issued cerificates, NHIS does not have enough capacity to do both.

    “HCPAN commends the scheme for its extensive coverage for ensuring the provision of qualitative healthcare to federal civil servants; pregnant women and children less than five years of age,” said Dr Anibaba.

    She called for a structured health care delivery system to make funds and resources available for the benefit of citizens. She said though the health care providers were ready to deliver services to the best of their ability, primary health care centres were still substandard.

    Urging the government  to equip primary health centres  to make them perform optimally, Dr Anibaba said: “When these facilities are upgraded to meet global standards, health workers will be more dedicated to improve the health status of their patients and community by providing accessible, affordable, quality health care services to everyone, regardless of ability to pay. The NHIS under the leadership of the Executive Secretary, Dr. Femi Thomas had gone to higher levels, but much still needed to be done  to truly make health care delivery universal.”

    Mrs Olaniba said the advent of the NHIS had depleted the resources of many private health care centres, instead of boosting them; urging the Federal Government to spread funds and enrollees between the private and public health sectors to make for balance and proper care.

  • Custodian wins insurance leader award

    Custodian and Allied Insurance Limited has emerged winner of the PEARL Awards for sectoral leadership.

    The PEARL Awards is an annual event organized for and on behalf of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to promote excellence and honor deserving corporates.

    Custodian And Allied Insurance Limited (CAIL), a registered member of the Nigerian Insurance Association is a member of the CUSTODIAN Group with other sister companies including Custodian and Allied Life Assurance Limited, Custodian Trustees Limited and Crusader Sterling Pensions Limited completing the highly specialized array of businesses in its fold.

    Speaking at the event, the company’s head of Management Services, Mrs. Olubunmi Aderemi thanked customers and the investing public for their contributions.

    Managing director of the Company, Mr. Wole Oshin while receiving the award commended the organizers for sustaining the ideals of the Pearl awards in line with best practice, promising that Custodian will continue to apply itself towards its corporate vision and mission while consistently driving innovation, applying cutting edge technology and superior manpower to ensure we continue to exceed customer expectations at all times’

    Furthermore, he congratulated the Board, Management and staff of Custodian for the feat, while charging them to continue doing their best for the overall good of clients and the industry.

     

     

  • 55 insurance firms generate N40.7b gross premium in Q2

    55 insurance firms generate N40.7b gross premium in Q2

    • AIICO, Leadway, Custodian emerge leaders

    About 55 insurance firms out of 59 firms recorded combined N40.7 billion in the second quarter, it was learnt.

    The Nation gathered the top 10 insurance firms generated the highest gross premium income in the industry in the of the year.

    The leading firms include AIICO Insurance Plc, which generated N12.6 billion premium income followed closely by Leadway Assurance Limited with N12.5 billion premium incomes. Custodian and Allied Insurance Plc came third with N8.6 billion.

    The other firms in the top 10 are Mansad Insurance Plc, which recorded N7 billion, Niger Insurance plc N5.1 billion, African Alliance Insurance Plc N4.9 billion, NEM Insurance Plc N4.3 billion, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc N4.1 billion, Royal Exchange Insurance Company Limited N3.4 billion and Zenith Insurance Company Limited N3.5 billion.

    On the other side, the 10 firms that generated the lowest premium income, which is below one billion naira include Unic Insurance Plc with the lowest income of N45. 3 million followed by N222.4 million. Universal Insurance Company Limited came third on the bottom three with barely N265.6 million.

    Others are  Guinea Insurance Plc that recorded N294.8 million, Wapic Life Assurance Limited N372.5 million, Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation N483.2 million, ARM Life Insurance N585.6, Old Mutual Nigeria Life N594.6 million, Oasis Insurance Plc N785.4 million and KBL Insurance Limited, N799.8 million.

    In all, 55 out of the 59 firms generated the sum of over N40.7 billion insurance premium as at the period under review.

    Meanwhile, the two re-insurance firms in the country, Continental Reinsurance Company Plc and Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation generated a total of N7.4 billion with Continental Re, recording over N7 billion and Nigeria Re, recording N383 million.

    This was made known in the National Insurance Commission Status Report titled “2014 quarterly return of insurance companies as at November 21, 2014.”

    The report further showed that while most of the firms have submitted their 2014 first, second and third quarter reports, two firms namely NICON Insurance Plc and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) have not submitted their 2014 first, second and third quarter reports, Alliance & General Insurance, Alliance & General Life Assurance, Investment & Allied Insurance Plc and Spring Life Assurance Plc, which are currently under NAICOM regulatory intervention have also not submitted. However, premium generated in the third quarter cannot be fully determined because some firms have not submitted their reports.

    The 55 firms that have submitted their second quarter results and those that have submitted their third quarter results seem to be performing better this year than last year. They are complying more with the stipulated regulatory requirement by NAICOM and the Nigeria Stock Exchange in the submission of their quarterly and annual reports.

    Commissioner for Insurance, Fola Daniel while speaking in Lagos on “Late Submission of Audited Report,” said whereas the Insurance Act 2003 provides for submission of annual accounts not later than June 30, the requirement by the Nigeria Stock Exchange for listed companies is March 31.

    He said the commission had in the past continued to plead for forbearance. He noted that some of insurance firms do not submit annual accounts before Christmas. Going forward, he said all firms must comply with all requisite regulatory requirements without plea subsidies from NAICOM.

    The other firms that made up the 59 insurance companies are Anchor Insurance; ARM Life; Capital Express Assurance Ltd; Consolidated Hallmark Insurance; Cornerstone Insurance Plc; Custodian & Allied Insurance; Custodian Life Assurance Ltd; Equity Assurance Plc; FBN Life Assurance Ltd; Fin Insurance Company Ltd; Great Nigeria Insurance; Guinea Insurance Plc; Industrial & General Insurance Plc; KBL Insurance Ltd; International Energy Insurance Plc; Lasaco Assurance Plc; Lasaco Life Assurance Ltd and Law Union & Rock Insurance Company Plc.

    Others include Mutual Benefit Assurance Plc; Mutual Benefits Life Assurance Ltd; NICON Insurance Ltd; NSIA Insurance Ltd; Oasis Insurance Plc; Old Mutual Insurance Gen. Ltd; Prestige Assurance Plc; Regency Alliance Insurance Plc; Royal Prudential Life Assurance Plc; Staco Insurance Plc; Standard Alliance Insurance Plc; Standard Alliance Life Assurance Company Ltd; Sterling Assurance Nigeria Ltd; Universal Insurance Company Ltd; UBA Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Ltd; UNIC Insurance Plc; Union Assurance Company Ltd; Unitrust Insurance Company Ltd; Unity Kapital Assurance Plc; Wapic Insurance Plc; Zenith Life Insurance Company Limited.

  • Monarch makes case for health insurance

    The ongoing community-based health insurance scheme in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has inspired a traditional ruler, the  Agora of Zuba, Alhaji Mohammed Umar, to call for the immediate implementation of the plan in his community.

    The monarch, who took it upon himself to invite the Director of FCT Area Councils Health Insurance Scheme (FAHIS), Dr. Grace Aganaba to his palace, said that there is the need for the scheme to be introduced in his community for the health benefit of his people.

    According to Umar, receiving the presence of the Dr. Grace Aganaba and her team in his palace, was an indication that the FCT Health Insurance Scheme would commence immediately in Zuba, because, the people are in need of health care assistance from the government.

    “Because, I have been hearing about this scheme from people and I have read about it in different newspapers, wandering when it will get to Zuba community. The last one I heard was on radio, when the team went for distribution of health insurance cards at Gwargwada community, that when I called the chief of Gwargwada to intimate me on how he got the scheme to his community.

    “He gave me the director’s number, which I called her. But, I am not happy that the scheme went round my chiefdom without getting to my domain up until now. As far the director of the scheme has come today, I am happy and I am willing to support it to the fullest for the benefit of my people.”

  • Insurance firms launch first online auto policy

    Insurance firms launch first online auto policy

    In its quest to encourage insurance culture, six leading insurance companies including AIICO Insurance, Custodian & Allied Insurance, Leadway Assurance, NEM Insurance, Royal Exchange Plc and Sovereign Trust Insurance along with the National Insurance Commission and Hightower Insurance Brokers at the weekend launched MyAutoGenius.com, arguably Nigeria’s first online insurance comparison platform that promises to provide car owners across Nigeria with auto insurance policies within five minutes.

    With 15.5 million cars in Lagos alone and over 14per cent of cars on Nigerian roads uninsured or driving with fake insurance policies, there has always been a gap to access an insurance intermediary channel that will provide the advantage of convenience, speed and authentic insurance covers in real-time.

    All insurance policies bought on myautogenius.com web or mobile sites will also  be uploaded instantly on Nigeria Insurance Database (NIID), by Hightower Insurance Brokers Ltd (The brokerage company behind AutoGenius), to guarantee its authenticity.

    At the launch, Mr. Kola Oyeneyin CEO, Venia Technologies Limited, owners of myautogenius.com, demonstrated to the audience how fast and easy it is for prospective clients to buy their car insurance covers available from the leading insurance players in the country within five minutes.

    Speaking on the new innovation, the Deputy Director of the Nigerian Insurance Commission – Mr. Segun Farinu, who represented the National Insurance Commissioner Mr. Fola Daniel, said the entire insurance industry in Nigeria is excited about an expected positive impact that technology would have in the insurance sub-sector, especially with initiatives like myautogenius.com.

    He said that the seriousness of the insurance industry was evident as all partners have come out in full support of the transformation drive embarked on by the team at AutoGenius.

    Echoing similar sentiments, Mr. Onyeka Akumah, Lead Marketing/Communications Consultant at AutoGenius also explained that leading up to the launch, the  marketing team created hash tag #OneGuyLikeThat to ask Nigerians about their ‘One-Guy-Like-That’ experience in general and as it concerned auto insurance.

    With over 204,285 Nigerians reached in seven days of starting off the campaign, there was a lot of buzz and expectation to the launch of AutoGenius in other to understand what exactly Nigerians were to expect from the platform, Akumah stressed.

    Other partners who were well represented at the event and support the platform with added advantages for users who will purchase their auto-insurance policies through the platform include AA Rescue, and Oando Marketing Plc , which had Mr. Mobolaji Bamiro  representing its Chief Executive, Mr. Yomi Amobokun.