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| Soladoye |
Chuks Udo Okonta
Micro-insurance operators are in for
good business as there are over 60 million potential customers to patronise
them, Inspen can report.
This portends great prospect for the insurance industry as recent survey reveals that
nine in 10 Nigerians (86 per cent) do not have any form of insurance cover
while vehicle/car insurance (63 per cent) is the most commonly purchased cover
compared to a much smaller 20 per cent of the population that had life
assurance.
According to the report, of the 86 per cent who do not have any form of
insurance cover, nine per cent of them do not trust insurance service
providers, the research firm said.
The research which sought to review the insurance culture in Nigeria also
identified cultural and religious factors as essential factors leading to the
slow growth of the insurance sector.
Previous studies have shown that low awareness and lack of knowledge about
insurance products characterised people’s opinions about the insurance sector.
The recent poll however indicated that despite
the poor insurance culture, there are huge potentials for insurance companies
and practitioners, particularly in the area of designing new products that will
be attractive to youths across the country.
Managing Director Riskguard-Africa
Nigeria Limited, Soladoye, who spoke on how to unlock micro-insurance business
in Nigeria, at the just concluded Inspenonline’s Insurance and Pension Award,
said insurance brokers should take the lead on micro-insurance distribution,
adding that there are at least 60 million potential customers waiting for them
from aggregators like Cooperative Societies, the Microfinance Banks and the
Faith Based Organisations.
He urged the National Insurance
Commission (NAICOM) to take advantage of the existing brokers with no Abuja
connection, weak Micro-Finance Banks (MFBs) and existing insurance agents to
license the 1st set of providers, adding that they would be more productive as
they already know how to comply with regulation and supervision.
Commissioner
for Insurance Fola Daniel, said NAICOM has received not less than 25 enquiries
from would be operators since micro-insurance and Takaful guidelines were
released last year.
"I
can confirm to you that we have received not less than 25 enquiries from those
who want to do Takaful and micro-insurance both from existing insurance
companies and stand-alone operators.”
“We
are encouraging them to come on board because the potential is huge and what it
requires is only awareness so that people can appreciate the concept, and the
fact that it is the opposite of conventional insurance," he told
BusinessDay.
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