The Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers has disclosed that about 70 per cent of Nigerians are currently not covered by insurance.
The 13th Area Committee Chairman, Abuja Area Committee, NCRIB, Ojo Richard, disclosed this at a parley and investiture, stressing that Nigerians need to change their perspective and see insurance not as a burden but a financial tool.
Richard explained that to nip this in the bud, the level of advocacy to ensure more Nigerians get insured is gradually increasing, but advised that Nigerians should use insurance as their best cover in cases of eventualities and as the best tool in planning their future.
“For us, we had a level of penetration in the country, I think it’s about four per cent. It’s increasing fast because basically, when you look at the uninsured public in Nigeria, they are over 70 per cent. The majority of the middle class and low-income earners in Nigeria see insurance coming last when they set their priorities, but rather, insurance should come first,” he stated.
Richard further highlighted the need for insurance practitioners to underwrite good policies to build customers’ trust, noting that consumers should see insurance as a necessity, while the government should strengthen policies that allow both high and low-income earners to be insured.
Speaking on the theme ‘Customer-Centricity: Redefining the Insurance Brokers’ Role, and the task for Insurance Penetration in Nigeria’, the President, NCRIB, Babatunde Oguntade, noted that insurance practitioners should be able to feel the pulses of their customers by profiling their risks and approving policies that are peculiar to their needs.
“The specific role starts from putting yourself in the customer’s shoes, anticipating what the customer really wants. The needs of every customer differ; there are no two customers whose needs are the same. So when you anticipate, then you build programmes.
“You profile the risk that the customer is exposed to in a way that when the risk crystallises, the customer will just keep smiling, there will be no sorrowful stories,” he added.
Meanwhile, Oguntade noted that the council will strengthen its advocacy measures to ensure that more Nigerians are insured, but advised Nigerians to stop procrastinating and get insured as early as possible.
“The truth is that insurance normally is the last item on the checklist of the low and mighty. A man who decides to ignore insurance does it at his own peril. You find that the man who needs insurance keeps procrastinating. Take insurance and help yourself so that when a story that touches happens, insurance will be there for you to rely on,” he stated.
