General News
SOME insurance stakeholders in Anambra have described the process of claiming insurance benefits from companies after disasters as “cumbersome”.
The stakeholders made the remarks in separate interviews while reacting to a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) survey on why Nigerians shun insurance policy.
They noted that the difficulties associated with insurance company policies were the major reasons many Nigerians lost confidence in them.
A resident, Mr Samuel Chijioke, lamented the processes and documention they made their enrollees pass through in the event of a disaster such as vehicle accident or fire, describing it as worrisome and discouraging.
According to him, the insurance policies in Nigeria is cumbersome when one needs to be compensated.
“The requirements process is crazy as they will continue to play delayed tactics, frustrate you and make one lose interest in claiming benefits in the process.
“They will want to frustrate you so that you can leave your benefits with them,” he said.
Mr Emeka Okeke, a businessman, said that Nigerians were not benefiting from insurance policy because many did not know about them.
“Many Nigerians lack knowledge about their activities, they don’t even know that insurance policy exist in Nigeria; they need to step up awareness campaign.
“Nigerians need to be convinced, seeing those involved in disaster benefiting from them; these will make many want to register with them,” he said.
Mr Okechukwu Obeta, Awka resident and a journalist with The Leadership Newspaper, said that he did not take insurance policy because he held no trust in the implementation processes.
He said that desired transparency was not seen in the processes as obtained in western world, the country is not mature yet for such venture due to massive corruptions in fabrics of the nation.
“I will not for now patronise the process because I view it as a way of encouraging mediocrity,”.
Mr Christian Beluchukwu, a trader and resident in Awka said that the policy was strange to the people and it required serious advocacy before majority of the people could key into the business.
Beluchukwu said that he saw the business as business of people in lack of gainful employment and expressed fear of absconment or stories of woes.
Mr Ekene Ukoh, a rice farmer, says he does not need any insurance policy for his Agric business.
“I do not believe I need insurance policy. If I have such money, I will invest it in my rice farm,” he said.
Mr Jude Nwankwo, Programme Manager, Agricultural Development Programme (ADP), Anambra State, told NAN that the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Cooperation (NAIC), in the state, enlightened farmers on insurance policies documentation and claims settlement procedure.
Nwankwo said that some cooperative farmers in the state keyed into the insurance policy to avoid losses and protect farm produce.
“We continue to encourage farmers in the state to insure their crops against disasters like fire outbreak, lightening, windstorm, flood, droughts, pest and other diseases that attack crops,” he said.
In his views, Mr Tope Daramola, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) told NAN that many Nigerians were shying away from taking insurance policy due to ignorance, religious beliefs, poverty and economic recession.
Daramola said: “The fact is when you do not know about something, you are equally ignorant of the benefits embedded in it.
“Also, many Nigerians believe that it is only God that protects and they hold on to the ‘God forbid and it cannot happen to me syndrome’ whereas it is the same people who brought religion to us that brought insurance.
“Then poverty and economic hardship is a factor where insurance is not in the budget of many Nigerians. They tell you they have not eaten and you are asking them to get insurance. These are the issues,” he said.
Daramola said insurance was important describing it as the last hope of the common man in advanced countries, where it is all about insurance from cradle to growth.
He said that insurance covered every aspect of human risks one could think of so that “affliction would not arise a second time”.
“Coming to Nigeria, many people do not understand that the world is full of risks and life also happens either negatively or positively, regardless of your religious beliefs.
“And when life happens, you need insurance for succour and to cushion the challenges faced either in the event of death, destruction of property due to accident, fire or flood disaster.
“We have insurance brokers operating all over the country, including Anambra and they help to breakdown the concepts of insurance and its benefits in the language every Nigerian will understand.
“On our part we will continue to intensify public sensitisation to make Nigerians aware of insurance and its many benefits,” he added. (NAN)
28th September, 2024.
C.E.
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