The Nation Newspaper

Tag: premium

  • 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.

  • Prestige records N2b premium

    Prestige records N2b premium

    Prestige Assurance Plc has recorded a gross premium income of N2.4 billion in its financial year end 2015. Chairman, Prestige Assurance Plc, Hassan Usman made this known during the company’s 2015 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos.

    According to him, the company’s profit before tax stood at N20.3 million while loss incurred after tax stood at N145.3 million during the year under review due to the peculiarity of the tax laws guiding insurance companies where  tax is levied against premium earned and not profit made.

    He disclosed that underwriting expenses stood at N1.7 billion just as result from operating activities was N39.6 million. He noted that the company was well poised to tap into areas of opportunity to go forward.

    He said: “Our unmatched depth of knowledge of the market and very strong international links, gave us cause to believe that we were well poised to tap into areas of opportunity in the market with our market-winning products and services.

    “As part of our strategy to achieve our intention to be one of the top three insurance companies in Nigeria, the strategic business unit, e-business and Ikeja branch office were opened and made operational. There are plans to open more branches with the intention of acquiring more market share of the insurance industry.

    “We are also working tirelessly to adapt technology to our business and we have been able to integrate our software, Global Insurance Business Solution, to our operations’ lines and services while introducing a number of value-added products and services that would considerably enrich the company’s customer experience.”

  • Insurers: recession takes toll on premium, profit, others

    Hard times have hit the insurance industry as premium income has gone down, whilst claims cost and operational expenses have risen astronomically, thus taking its toll on margins, the Chairman, Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA), Eddie Efekoha, has said.

    Efekoha, who spoke at his investiture ceremony in Lagos, lamented that the performance of most insurance stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has been so flat that financial analysts have stopped including most insurance companies in their forecasts.

    He said generally, businesses are facing greater threats principally as a result of dwindling revenues, poor infrastructure, lack of power, inflationary trends in all sectors occasioned by the decline in the value of the naira. He listed insecurity amongst  other challenges as impediments facing insurers, adding that importation and local manufacturing are currently at low ebb.

    He said the insurance sector was directly impacted by these disruptions, adding that these times demands internal cohesion and collaborative action. “It therefore behoves on all of us as industry players to respond quickly to the changing dynamics of the market space so that we can remain relevant and bestow a worthy legacy to the future generation of insurers,” he advised.

    He said it was in the light of these developments in the local market that he decided to commit his chairmanship to address the theme-Sustainable Market Development Through Stakeholder Engagement.

    He said: “Essentially, all the programmes we will be executing will find space under this central theme. Very often, insurance as an instrument for financial intermediation is misunderstood by policy makers; it is therefore necessary to enter into constructive engagement with relevant stakeholders. This will include the need to share knowledge with judicial officers–magistrates and judges on the workings of insurance business and to fully equip them to be able to respond adequately to the rising cases of fraudulent claims in the market, among other adjudication issues.

    “We will engage with the legislators in the process of making laws that affect the economy at large and insurance industry in particular.  They are major stakeholders whose support the industry would require at all times. The various bills before the National Assembly require concerted efforts to push through the industry position. It is only with the active engagement with the lawmakers that the industry can protect its business interests.

    “On tax matters, we are all witnesses to the lingering issue of the heavy tax burden imposed on the insurance industry by CITA 2007. This further strengthens the need for us as an association to continually engage with the tax authorities with a view to amicably resolving all the issues and avoiding areas of future conflict.”

  • 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.

  • Premium gives prizes to social media campaign winners

    Premium Pension Limited, one of the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), has given out four categories of prizes to winners who competed in the first phase of its social media campaign, which ran from February 15 to March 19.

    The campaign tagged #Reward4DHustle was on the social platforms of Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook and was anchored by Alder Consulting Limited.

    The campaign provided an opportunity for the company to address public enquiries and requests through the instrumentality of modern information technology and also contribute to the generation of public awareness as to the workings of the Contributory Pension Scheme.

    Kofoworola George-Taylor, an event manager based in Lagos won on Instagram and received a prize of a fully-paid project management course and international travel while Olanike Oyediran, a Lagos-based lawyer won on Facebook and got the opportunity to undergo a fully-paid project management certification course.

    Another prize was for Idris Abubakar Sadiq, a computer engineer/teacher based in Kaduna who won a home office (laptop, printer and modem) while Ogbonna Kingsley Leo, an Enugu-based nurse won on Instagram and received a laptop.

    The Managing Director of Premium Pension Limited, Wilson Ideva, said the winners have become the company’s brand ambassadors. He said that pension is all about one making plans on how to take care of oneself at old age.

  • ‘Fed Govt owes Armed Forces insurers 2013 premium’

    ‘Fed Govt owes Armed Forces insurers 2013 premium’

    The Federal Government is owing insurers and brokers’ premiums for 2013 Group Life Insurance Policy (GLIP) of the  Armed Forces, Defence Spokesman, Colonel Rabe Abubakar, has said.

    Abubakar, who made this known in an interview, however, said efforts were on to ensure that the premium was paid to the brokers to enable them pay beneficiaries of the deceased.

    He appealed to the next-of-kins of the deceased soldiers affected, to be patient, assuring that they would receive their payments soon.

    He said: “We have Group Life Insurance Policy for our soldiers and it covers those who died in active service. The policy was given to brokers accredited by the Defence Ministry.

    “All premiums have been paid except 2013 premium, but we are making efforts to ensure that we pay the premium to the brokers so that they can begin to pay claims to the affected beneficiaries.

    “The leadership of the military is very concerned because the welfare of the military is very compulsory. We are trying to solve the problem within the shortest possible time,” he said.

    Earlier, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, said the Federal Government is owing insurance industry cumulative premium in excess of N10 billion.

    She said the government was conscious of its debt to the sector and would endeavour to offset outstanding premiums as soon as the economic situation improves.

    “The government, meeting its responsibility of paying premiums to some extent is a challenge; you will also agree with me that there is a serious situation in the country in terms of revenue that accrues to government.

    “The tasks ahead are onerous and it is the expectation of government that the Nigerian insurance industry should wake up to its responsibilities and as a potential growth area of our economy, it must accept the challenges of change.

    “It must surmount its timidity, shape up and contribute to the turnaround of the economy. It must contribute positively to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the creation of employment. It can achieve these by cleaning itself of the bad eggs within itself and by improving its services to its consumers.”

    Commissioner for Insurance, Alhaji Mohammed Kari, also said the industry has made frantic efforts at recovering the Federal Government’s outstanding premium owed to the insurance companies.

    Kari said the Commission is looking at reviewing Federal Government insurance policies to meet the desired requirement of insurance.

  • Premium Pension assets hit N370b

    Premium Pension Limited, a Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) has recorded pension assets in excess of N370 billion and pension enrollees spread in over 1000 organisations across the country, the company’s Managing Director, Wilson Ideva has said.

    He made this known in an interaction with reporters in Lagos. He highlighted the greater role of the media in the consolidation and improvement of pension industry gains and the importance of premium pension contributions.

    He said the company has paid out over N87 billion to over 33,000 retirees or their next-of-kin as entitlements since 2007, adding that the Company maintains well over 600,000 Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).

    Ideva said Premium Pension has already been firmly established as a key player in the new Contributory Pension Scheme. He said: “It is important to note that Premium Pension has consistently posted return on investment of pension asset well above industry average and above inflation.

    “It is important to note that Premium Pension has been paying out monthly pension to retirees on the 19 of every month. Our retirees have attested to the fact that even when they were in active service they never received their monthly salaries on that date. While we continue to pay monthly pension, our return on investment has continued to outstrip the amounts paid.  This has led to agitations for payment of additional lump sum and, or increase in monthly withdrawal, which shows the evidence of the huge success that the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) has been.

    “Professionalism in pension service rendition at Premium Pension is complemented by the Company’s adoption of the robust Canadian Pension Administration Software (CPAS). We are partnering with this organisation to ensure continued cutting edge service delivery. All the relevant staff members operating this software have been adequately trained in Canada by CPAS.

    “The company is run by young Nigerian professionals and a wholly Nigerian board of diverse background and competencies. With a view to facilitating its operations and enhancing customer service and interaction, Premium Pension recently introduced a mobile application known as The Premium Pension Mobile.

    This is in response to the evident need for devices that would further close the gap between the company’s operations and its customers on the one hand and the customers and their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) on the other.

    He, however, said that the major challenge facing the CPS in Nigeria is lack of adequate public awareness, stressing that lack of awareness is even noticeable among the supposedly enlightened in the society. He said the situation is an offshoot of the initial skepticism that greeted the pension reform in 2004.

     

    “The old scheme had virtually collapsed; accumulating a deficit of more than N2 trillion and cases of corruption were rampant. The word ‘Pension’ as a consequence acquired a pejorative connotation.

    “It is against this backdrop that pension operators are now saddled with the responsibility of clearing this cobweb of ignorance about the workings of the new scheme. Premium Pension Limited has been consistent in the call for increased public awareness on the scheme.”

    While he pointed out that the media has contributed to the success of the Scheme, he said the CPS requires increased public awareness drive to be able to further extend the gains of the industry. He noted that the new pension scheme has gone through the teething stages and has come to stay.

  • CHI posts N4.6b premium income

    Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc has posted a premium income of N4.67 billion in its financial year ended 2014 compared to the N4.15 billion recorded during the 2013 Financial Year.

    The company recorded an underwriting profit of N863.2 million compared to N1.05 billion recorded in 2013.

    Profit Before Tax moved from a loss situation of N 181.1 million in 2013 to N205.6 million in 2014 while profit after tax also grew from a negative position of N200.5 million in 2013 to a profit of N193 million in 2014.

    The Company Chairman, Dr Ugo  Obi Ralph Ekezie who made this known in Lagos, said the results have placed the company again on the path of profitability, a trend which was only broken briefly during the 2013 financial year when significant provision was made for impairment charges.

    He said it is good to know that the temporary setback has now been reversed with these results, adding that the unaudited financial statements of the company for the half year ended June 30, 2015 is indicative of the improved health in its finances.

    He said: “Profit before Tax for the period currently stands at N 469 million with retained earnings of N148 million.

    “It is hoped that this trend will be sustained for the rest of the year, and on the account of that, the board has decided to pay an interim dividend of N120 million upon approval.

    He said that the future economic outlook of the country will be quite challenging, especially against the backdrop of falling crude oil prices and depreciating value of the Naira. Ekezie is however hopeful that the future of the insurance industry remains very bright giving the existing low penetration rate.

    He assured the shareholders that the company will take full advantage of technology to drive the retail segment of the insurance market, and revealed that there are also plans in place to partner with Nigerian banks to drive the Bancassurance model for which the Central Bank of Nigeria recently issued a guideline.

    Managing Director, CHI, Eddie Efekoha, said  the company’s 2014 financial year results do not appear as robust as they expected since the company, like others in the sector and other players in financial services operated under very challenging economic conditions.

    “The power sector reforms that heralded transfer of ownership to the private sector, beginning with the Distribution Companies (DISCOs) came with much hope for a reduction in expenditure on energy in 2014. However, not much progress was recorded as we continued to expend a large chunk of resources to generate our own energy.

    “Also, the devaluation of the local currency which moved the official band to N168 to $1 shot up the rates close to the N200 to $1 mark during the year. This impacted heavily on our expenses as practically all partners adjusted their pricing templates to reflect the new realities,” he said.

    Efekoha said it is pertinent to mention that in spite of the difficult operating terrain, some positive developments are occurring in the industry.

    The regulatory environment in the Nigerian Insurance market helped in no small measure, as envisaged, to minimise the incidence of outstanding premium, he added.

    “Enforcement of the “No Premium, No Cover” provision which began  in 2013 was intensified during the year, hence there has been a remarkable improvement in cash flow.

    “We are happy to report also that conflicts with clients over periodic statement of account positions have been reduced to the barest minimum, and we are confident that reconciliations shall be purely on details and not outstanding premium”, he said.

  • LASACO Assurance posts N5.63b gross premium

    LASACO Assurance posted N5.63billion in  gross premium in the year ended December 31, 2014, as against the N4.96 billion recorded in 2013, Group Managing Director, Olusola Ladipo-Ajayi has said.

    Lado-Ajayi, who made this known in Lagos, said the company’s profit before tax grew to N525. 85 million as against N412.8 million made in 2013.

    According to him, earning per share also increased from N00.4 in 2013 to N00.6 in the year under review. He said: “The company’s revenue base and performance increased thus affirming its leading role in the insurance sector of the economy.

    “The performance is a product of team work and strategic deployment of resources and the restructuring is paying up. We have deployed both human and physical resources to chart a new direction for the organisation to remain the toast of investors.’’

    He said the company is living up to its mission to enhance profitability and deliver dividends to its stakeholders. He added that they have embarked on several restructuring programmes aimed at focusing on its core competence areas to deliver positive results that engender corporate growth.

    He underscored the commitment of the company to sustaining its customer centric posture in order to remain a dynamic and vibrant player in the nation’s financial services sector. This has manifested in several strategies being deployed to develop innovative products and services to align with the aspirations of the customers.

     

     

  • Niger Insurance posts N11b gross premium

    Niger Insurance Plc has achieved a 5.95 per cent growth in its gross premium written of N11.06 billion in 2014 as against N10.44 billion recorded in 2013.

    In the same vein, the group profit after tax rose to N690.96 million in 2014 from N627.42 million in 2013 in spite of the challenges in the operating environment.

    A dividend payment of 3.5 kobo per 50 kobo share amounting to N270.88 million has however been approved by the shareholders.

    The company’s Chairman, Bala Zakariyau made this known during the 45th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the organisation in Sokoto.

    He stated that the management’s ability to cut costs also helped to increase the profit as management expenses reduced by 29.27 percent from N4.68 billion in 2013 to N3.31 billion in 2014.

    He added that the company’s net premium income increased by about 1.45 percent to N9.79 billion in 2014 from N9.65 billion in 2013.

    He said the underwriting firm is increasing equity in business and also improving on its insurance fund as investment income grew by 46 percent to N1.15 billion in 2014 from N790.54 million in 2013.

    He said: “A dividend payment of 3.5 kobo per 50 kobo share amounting to N270.88 million was approved by the shareholders at the yearly meeting.

    “Growth in investment income was due to strict implementation of NAICOM directives on “No Premium No Cover Policy” from January 1, 2014.

    The policy aims to stimulate liquidity within the system by reducing the huge receivables being carried on the statement of financial position of insurance companies.

    “Niger Insurance has been intensifying payment of claims to clients as its claims ratio increased to 37.88 percent in 2014 from 35.72 percent in 2013.Claims expenses in 2014 was N4.19 billion, representing an increase of 12.33 percent compared to N3.72 billion recorded in 2014.”

    Zakariyau added that the company is determined to give more attention to the retail segment of the insurance industry going forward noting that it is less volatile and diversify its investments portfolio, review and revamp product offerings.

    He assured that the organisation would hasten formation of new local and international alliances to further consolidate its position in the industry.