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Chuks Udo Okonta
The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has said only claims issues
that are N100 million and above should be referred to its Customers’ Complaint
Bureau, saddled with the responsibilities of resolving problems between insurers
and the insured.
Its Director-General, Sunday Thomas, disclosed this at the association’s
annual general meeting in Lagos, adding that the resolution was reached in the review
of the operation guidelines for the NIA customers’ complaint bureau.
He noted that the desire to review the guideline was informed by the
need to widen the scope and enhance the efficiency of the established
alternative dispute resolution mechanism.
He said: “The association’s desire to widen the scope and enhance the efficiency
of the established alternative dispute resolution mechanism required that the
operational guideline for the resolution of customers’ complaint bureau be
reviewed. This was effected, to include the resolution of disputes between
members companies.
“A mediation advisory committee was established with the responsibility
for reviewing disputes between members companies. Where however an insurer is
not satisfied with the decision of the committee, such insurers shall be free
to lodge its complaint with the association’s customers’ complaint bureau.
“The review also included the introduction of a limit on the value of
claims that should be referred to the bureau; this was set at a minimum of N100
million.”
Former Chairman of the association Olusola Ladipo-Ajayi, said the bureau was not established to
witch-hurt anybody or to de-market any company, but to provide fast dispute
resolution mechanism between insurer and their clients.
“What we suffer is that when one insurance company does extremely well, the
members of the public would say this is rather an exception, the company takes
the credit alone, but when one company does exceptional bad, rather than seen
that as an exception, the public would say that is the way insurance industry
behaves. So, this is our concern and it was generally agreed that we submit to
the jurisdiction of the customers’ compliant bureau.”
He said a number of cases have been resolved amicably through the bureau.
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