NIA to deploy 100 vehicle insurance license e-readers in Lagos

Chuks Udo Okonta

The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) hopes to deploy about 100 vehicle insurance license e-readers to Lagos State to checkmate the menace of fake policies, its Director- General Sunday Thomas, has said.

He told Inspen that the association had has several meetings with the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation, stressing that the association with the ministry would soon fix a date for the deployment of the gadgets.

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.

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.