The low adoption of insurance policies by Nigerians, stakeholders have argued, is a clog in the wheel of anticipated growth of the sector and the economy as a whole.

The National President, Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria (ARIAN), Kazeem Olakunle Odewunmi, said that there are less than two million policyholders in Nigeria.

He said: “Currently, less than two million policies are sold in Nigeria, of the over 200 million people, so the penetration is still very low. Nigeria is ranked about 64th in the world, when it comes to insurance policy adoption. In Africa, South Africa is leading with 15 cent followed by Egypt 13 per cent, even Kenya is ahead of us, holding above three per cent. This shows that Nigeria is still far behind in terms of insurance penetration.”

He, therefore, urged members to further adopt personalised service to promote policies and attract more prospects.
The President, IPEN, Chuks Udo Okonta, said that achieving service excellence in the sector is a collective effort by all stakeholders.

He said: “Several reasons have been adduced for poor insurance penetration in Nigeria, ranging from the country’s peculiar market environment, limited public awareness and negative public perception by those who are unaware of insurance. But in reality, inadequate service delivery is a major challenge to why insurance acceptance has been very low.

“Although, the insurance industry is expected to hit N1trillion premium income target in the 2023 financial year, a feat that ought to have been achieved eight years ago, precisely 2015. The pension funds asset in the kitty of the pension sector are expected to surpass N18 trillion by the end of the outgoing year. These are and will be great achievements. However, they were long overdue as this is barely scratching the surface of potentials and opportunities that exist in both sectors,” Okonta said.

He emphasised the need for quality service delivery in the pension sector for overall success and sustainability of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), considering its retail nature. “Achieving service excellence in the sector is a collective effort by all stakeholders to ensure enhanced service delivery,”

Head, Lagos Office, Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Mrs. Susie Onwuka, said the industry needs to do a lot on customers’ satisfaction and enlightenment on critical clauses that can void a policy, rather than shocking customers with such clauses at the point of redemption.

She highlighted the major challenge with insurance in Nigeria to include; bureaucracy in accessing claims, poor understanding of policy clauses, noting that some policies are too rigid for customers to understand.

The keynote speaker, the Director, Centre for Pension Rights Advocacy (CPRA), Takor Ivor, said: “Now is the right time for leaders in both insurance and pension industries to rethink, redefine and transform what their teams deliver and how it is delivered”

He noted that transforming service delivery models will improve inside-led decisions making, so that insurers and PFAs can exploit market opportunities in a strategic, safe and informed way. “Building an inclusive culture for service delivery has to be deliberate.”