Agency rates insurers low on customers’ research

Agency rates insurers low on customers’ research

Chuks Udo Okonta

Insurers have never spent time and money to do a comprehensive research on customers’ needs and services a report has said.

The report by GIZ, a German agency for sustainable development and Riskguard-Africa Nigeria Limited, said insurers have never spent time and money to do a comprehensive research to ascertain their customers, what they really want and how they can be served better.

The Agencies alleged that most underwriters only sell products without focusing on solutions to the needs of the customers.

They observed that the microfinance account underwriting is not attractive to the underwriters not because of high cost or of the small size of the premium, but because insurers are not selling solutions.

 Director General Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) Adegboyega Adepegba, said the institute has risen to the challenge of low level of research in the industry by establishing a college of insurance that would help enhance the level of research on how to foster the growth of the industry.

He said: “You cannot do research in insurance in isolation, research would have to look at the micro and macro economy. You have to look at insurance itself, look at the economy within which it is operates. To have any meaningful research it has to be all embracing. And maybe it has to start from conducting research on products and the need of the industry.

“You really need to know what the skill gaps where you can quickly put are in place proper training programme. For instance in the oil and gas, there is a yarning gap, that is the skill required to do that job effectively which may not be adequate for now and in the next few months the institute is going to do something to bridge that gap, there are so many other areas.”