The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has been urged by motorists to extend the same enforcement approach applied to third-party motor insurance implementation to the claims settlement by insurance companies.

Motorists who spoke to The Guardian at the weekend believe such enforcement would encourage more people to embrace insurance.

Speaking on third-party motor insurance enforcement, a commercial driver, Tosin Akintunde, stressed the need for NAICOM to formulate new strategies to ensure that insurance companies pay claims promptly in the country.

“NAICOM must brace up the trail; they should not allow this to be business as usual. They should penalise any insurance company that refuses to pay third-party motor insurance claims and involve the police in doing this,” Akintunde said.

Another policyholder, Olumide Aderigbole, said one of the challenges of insurance companies is the inadequate settlement of claims, which has major drawbacks for her in considering insurance policies.

He also called on NAICOM to tighten its regulatory nose on insurance to ensure that all insurance companies settle claims arising from third-party motor insurance, increase trust and encourage more people to patronise insurance.

Glory Eke, a business owner, and motorist, appealed to NAICOM and insurance companies to increase sensitisation efforts on third-party motor insurance policies for better understanding and patronage.

Speaking at the weekend on TVC, the Commissioner for Insurance, Olusegun Omosehin, urged Nigerians to recognise the benefits of third-party insurance and assured that NAICOM was committed to ensuring that claims are paid regularly.

“We want to appeal to Nigerians to be very positive about the benefits and be rest assured that NAICOM is here to enforce claims payment,” he said.