Vehicle insurance policies on NIA database hit 1.5m

 

Chuks Udo Okonta

About 1.5 million vehicle insurance policies have been uploaded to the industry's database platform, the Director General Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), Sunday Thomas, has said.

He disclosed this on Tuesday at a media parley in Lagos, adding that operators have continued to upload data of new policies they registered.

He said the association has procured 1000 units of motor insurance electronic readers, of which 25 units has been given to Ogun State Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) and that reports have revealed that the units has helped the agency to spot genuine policies.

Thomas said the association is presently discussing with the Lagos state government and that a date for the deployment of the devices in the state will soon be fixed.

He noted that with the success achieved from the deployment of motor insurance data, the association will intensify efforts to ensure that by the end of the year, marine data will be deplored followed by property and other classes of insurance.

NIA said it decided to start deplorement of the electronic devices with Abeokuta, because historically, insurance in the country is traceable to the city, adding that the state also is one of the states to first indicate interest in the project.

The industry’s database project which was conceived in 2010, to help develop robust information on insured vehicles, was launch on June 26, 2012. The NIA at the launch promised to deploy over 500000 electronic card readers to security agencies to verify genuine vehicle insurance licences.

The project according to NIA would eradicate fake insurances and minimise instances of fraudulent claims provide real time information that would address issues raised by all stakeholders: insuring public, market players, law enforcement agents and regulators. Serve as source of historical data for analysis and benchmarking, thereby providing qualitative analysis of industry performance.

It is believed that the initiative will enhance transparency and accountability to its stakeholders thereby restoring confidence in the insuring public, creates the basis for scientific management of operations in the industry and it will enable the tracking of transactions in the industry.