Experts in the insurance sector have attributed the lull in the sector to increasing poverty level of Nigerians, which has reduced the rate of insurance penetration across the nation.
A former Managing Director, African Alliance Insurance Plc, Mr. Ojeme Okpor, explained that insurance penetration is still very low in Nigeria due to poverty and ignorance.
According to him, a lot of Nigerians do not know what insurance is all about, as they only care about their families and future but don’t know that the best way a family can plan a better future is through insurance.
He said, “It is better to leave our children wealthy than to leave them begging for bread. Insurance are used to hedge the risk of financial losses, both big and small, that may result from damage to the insured or liability for damage to a third party.
“If you are underinsured, you become your own insurer for the balance of the losses, which will not be covered.
Some citizens give religious excuses that insurance is not proper, that it is against their religion, but the truth is that, insurance safeguards properties and gives rest of mind.”
The Managing Director, AIICO Plc, Mr. Edwin Igbiti, explained that the major challenge faced by insurance firm is lack of awareness.
He said that Nigerians do not know the benefits of insurance and it is not being taken as a way of life. According to him, insurance is a contract in which entity receives financial protection or reimbursement against losses from an insurance
company.
“If the economy is not booming then business is not booming and insurance firms need technical capability to build up,” he said.
The Risk Advisor, Lagos State Assurance Company, Mr. Tobi Shobande, attested that citizens tend to lose a lot due to lack of insurance, as life is full of risks.
“On the aspect of life assurance, insurer’s family gets compensation from the insurance company after the eventuality happens; insurance companies are not banks where you have to go through a lot of processes, and of even having to go to
court.
“Citizens lose more than they can imagine, owing to lack of insurance. Less than seven million Nigerians, out of the 180 million, are covered with insurance and most of them are federal and state government workers,” he said.
