No hiding place for erring operators – NAICOM

From left: President Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) Mrs Laide Osijo and Director Inspectorate National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) Thompson Barineka at the event.

Chuks Udo Okonta

The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has called on insurance brokers and other operators to abide by the industry’s laws or face the music as there is no longer hiding place for offenders.

Director Inspectorate NAICOM Thompson Barineka, who disclosed this today Wednesday, at this year’s Insurance Conference organised by the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) in Lagos, said NAICOM has set in motion measures that enable it oversee all the activities of operators, adding that the commission’s portal for daily monitoring of the activities of the operators will soon come on stream.

He called on the operators to esteem ethical practice and avoid compromised negotiations and granting cover on credit, stressing that the reforms being executed in the industry are meant to empower operators.

He urged brokers to comply fully with the no premium no cover rule, adding that there is no provision in the law for short term cover. He said brokers who grant short term covers will be penalised for violating the rule as sure is not capture in the industry’s Act.

He called on brokers to consider the trouble they create for underwriters whenever they take businesses on credit. He noted that the development of the industry is depended on brokers and underwriters.

Barineka called on operators to rejig their business strategy and process and promote self regulation to assist NAICOM in moving the industry forward.

President Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) Mrs Laide Osijo, called on brokers to embrace the new premium rule and support the regulator in ensuring that it succeeds as it remains one of the best things to have happened in the industry in recent times.