As victims of #EndSARS protest file for claims with insurance companies for compensation on losses, experts are concerned that some clients may have problem of adequacy in coverage.
According to experts, it is a common problem in this part of the world for clients to want to pay lower amount of premium (underinsurance) in coverage of their assets. Adequacy in coverage is paying the right amount of money (premium) for the risk covered in an insurance contract.
Experts at FBN Insurance Brokers Limited, reviewing the recent #EndSARS protest in many parts of the country, say only insured properties are qualified to make claims, but notes that there might exist the problem of adequacy of coverage for some clients. “It is common to see a lot of people in this part of the world underinsure their assets just to reduce cost. This I believe also highlights the importance of insurance brokers like ourselves who are able to provide insurance and risk advisory to ensure that individuals and businesses secure adequate cover for their assets and are also available to support in the event of a claim,” Olumide Ibidapo, managing director/CEO, FBN Insurance Brokers states.
Ibidapo expects that there would be a lot of claims submitted by the insuring public at this time, which will in turn affect the profitability of the industry this year. “Nonetheless, we believe that there is sufficient capacity within the Nigerian insurance industry to cater to the claims that would be made. According to Ibidapo, there is also a silver lining in the cloud for the industry as this series of events will further bring to the fore the need for insurance in a country like ours. “So, we expect that insurance uptake in the following months will increase as the general public comes to terms with the essence of the industry,” he notes.
On the importance of insurance, he says this cannot be overemphasised, saying, “Insurance at its core is a risk management/transfer strategy that helps individuals and businesses manage their risk by transferring the risk to an underwriter for a consideration called premium.”
Risks are inevitable, he says, stating that the best we can do really is to manage them, and insurance over the years has proven to be an effective tool for this purpose.
“No one could have foreseen the chaos and damage that has now occurred at the beginning of the year. However, while some businesses have to weep and worry about the future, others are rest assured because they have a cover in place,” he states. On how insurance brokers could help clients package their business, FBN Insurance Brokers notes, “We have over the years built expertise, experience and relationships that put us in the best position to help our clients manage their claims. The work really starts from the inception of the policy. We have an obligation to protect the interest of the clients and understand that the reason they are taking the policy in the first place is because they anticipate the possibility of a claim.
“So right from there, we put in measures and systems in place to help the claims management process seamless. We are also able to leverage our resources to help resolve borderline cases that clients cannot resolve on their own. All of these and more add up to the additional value proposition that insurance brokers have for the insuring public, the brokerage firm stated.
