Stakeholders commend industry’s database

THE Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID) solution initiated by the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) to check incidence of fraudsters and fake motor insurance certificates in the country, has received the commendation of insurance consumers.

Some of the stakeholders who spoke to The Guardian said the database is a good innovation by the industry that should help to minimise fake motor insurance certificates on the road. He said that when you feed in details of your vehicle into the portal, it will bring out details of your vehicle particulars if your insurance certificates are genuine.

For instance, a shareholder of an insurance company, Dr. Ezekiel Adeyemi, said during the yearly general meeting in Lagos, I think we should commend the association of underwriting companies for taking the initiative to reduce faking of vehicle insurance certificates and the loss of premium to the industry. I have tried it and is actually working, if it is sustained which I hope they will do, with time it will minimise the impact of fraudsters in the industry. I want to believe that with the co-operation of law enforcement agencies and the various sectors involved in transportation, it will go a long way to bring sanity to the system.

He said, “What I think the industry should do is to undertake more enlightenment campaign in the major urban centres, especially in Lagos since an estimated 60 per cent volume of vehicles plying the Nigerian roads are concentrated in Lagos State. Insurance companies should also join the campaign by advertising the names and logo of their companies for easy identification.

Also, an insurance technocrat and consultant, Chief Yemi Soladoye, in his remarks said that there was need to restore consumer trust and confidence in the insurance mechanism, consumer protection and enlightenment have to be accorded prime of place and international building blocks for insurance development in Nigeria.

According to him, there are millions of Nigerians over there without insurance protection. There are millions of victims of accidents and disasters out there whose lives we would have changed by enlightening them to take insurance protection for their lives and assets. That is the reason the industry must undertake persistent enlightenment of the public that they have a right for better life by taking insurance protection.

However, the Director-General of the Association, Sunday Thomas, explained that the NIID has continued to wax strong in performance and acceptability amongst the populace. The system’s operations had become more effective.