Insurance industry operators comprising the regulator, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and other arms of the sector, had discussions on contending issues confronting the sector in Nigeria. Operators groups in the industry Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers ((NCRIB) , the Institute of Loss Adjusters of Nigeria (ILAN) and the Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria (ARIAN), were blunt in presenting their positions at the concluding session of the insurance conference in Abuja on how the industry could be rebuild for optimal performance.
They were emphatic in their regret that ordinary issues that could have been resolved for effective development of the sector were rather made public issue due to improper handling. Commissioner for Insurance, Alhaji Mohammed Kari, who did not mince words in telling the operators the home truth, said insurance companies’ chief executives could not be making a mountain out of a mole hill, if they effectively carry out their duties as expected.
“The trends of individual component abusing the association is concerned that a company that has the issues on guidelines, regulation instead of coming to us discuss the issues, they go to the market association and make it a market issue when it does not concern majority. Guidelines released by the Commission cannot conform to everybody’s wishes or expectations. If you have specific issues you are not contented with, come to us, we will discuss and see how we can resolve issues but do not make it a whole industry issue,” he advised.
Amplifying the CFI further, the Deputy Commissioner for Insurance (technical), Mr Sunday Thomas, said insurance companies should not only research on products but also thoroughly package their products for acceptability. Thomas regretted that many insurance companies were having problem satisfying their customers in terms of product offerings, quality of services and sophistication of products offered and above all, packaging of their products.
To this end, he enlightened insurance companies that customer service was clearly important for winning new customers and retaining existing ones. The DCFI urged companies to ensure they employ more adequate staff with related professional back ground, saying such measures were important in the business.
“It is also important that the Chartered institute of Insurance must regularly review and expand their curriculum to meet with the present market need and build the capacity of student members.
Insurance companies must also allocate a percentage of its budget to Continuous Professional Development to keep staff abreast of professional standards and practices,” he added.
On his own, Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), Mr Eddie Efekoha, lamented that the negative attitude of Nigerians to insurance products might not be unconnected to the poor attitude of the insurers as regards non-payment of claims. Efekoha said some insurance companies were notorious of defaulting in premium payment in co-insured accounts which he noted, result in negative publicity that adversely affects the industry.
“Many top executives in the insurance industry are marketers who have risen through the ranks not because of their strong technical background in the industry but because of their distinctive salesmanship and the ability to bring in more clients than the others,” he said.
“A lead insurer would collect premium from the insured and not remit to the others when a claim arise from the account, the regulator and the insured would expect all the members of the co-insured account to forward their claims for the premium not yet received,” Efekoha reasoned.
According to him, “A broker for instance would collect premium from an account he brokered and hold on to it and when claims arise from the insured, the broker would start running around to see how the premium can reach the insurance companies so that the underwriter can pay claims on it.”
“All those are issues that erode confidence in the sector because the insured and the Nigerian public will not understand the nitty-gritty that caused the delay in claims payment,” he further said.
