To many of us, the insurance industry in Nigeria is performing significantly well when compared to the rate of growth of our economy, our Gross Domestic Product and other sectors; incidentally, reports from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) have alluded to this.
The reasons readily attributed to this unprecedented growth have been increased awareness among the insuring public and the improvement in claims payments, as confirmed by the insurance regulator, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) in its Q3 2023 Bulletin.
In my way of concurring with this position, I would attribute the industry’s performance to the positive experiences of policyholders (customers) propelled by the aggressive approach of insurers in the last few years.
Since insurers became more focused on getting some share of your wallet, by pointedly asking existing and potential policyholders to pay premium as the discussions open, more income has been generated notwithstanding the state of the economy.
Proponents of the thinking that the insurance industry in Nigeria could only thrive when the economy booms are taking a deeper review and we look forward to the report.
The truth is with improvement in the insurance experiences of Nigerians, we can expect the insurance industry to keep trumping others. So long as premium income grows, claims payments will increase and so will the growth rate of the industry.
Gravitating from an era of huge outstanding premiums and inglorious outstanding claims to this season of claims payments, often prompt, thanks to the effective implementation of the “No Premium, No Cover” regime, means the industry has successfully taken the curve towards excellent customer experiences.
To sustain this outlook and trend, there will be a need to intentionally engage insurance policyholders to continue sharing their experiences as they have been doing lately. Would you share your experiences especially if your insurer wanted to buy or pay for them?
This is why insurers will go to the extent of offering to buy or pay for your experiences: sustainability!
The current approach, which focuses on bringing in premium income, is not sustainable because of the implications for fraudulent practices besides the fact that it violates the market conduct guidelines set by the regulator.
To achieve sustainable growth, knowing the policyholders, their behaviours and preferences will become more important than their premium payments.
Insurers are still burdened by distribution costs which take the bulk (sometimes up to 70 percent) of the premium received and they will need the answers of policyholders like you to their questions, to develop the plan that can possibly nudge them on.
Insurers would ask questions like:
- Can you provide all necessary details including pictures and videos of the property or person you want to insure?
- Can we VERIFY all the information you have provided?
- Can we track the persons and properties that are insured by us?
Your answers will be the recording of your experiences, which they will need to improve and sustain the trajectory of growing premium income. This is where automation and digitisation take over.
As you would be required to answer their questions whether directly or indirectly, insurers will have no choice but to offer incentives for you (existing and potential policyholders) to provide verifiable responses.
Recognising that with digital solutions they can now predict the behaviours of customers, insurers will need the information and data in their possession to be valid. Besides distribution, product development depends highly on the profiling elements of communities of customers.
You are going to need to connect, cooperate and collaborate with your insurers to get the intrinsic value of insurance for any policies you buy.
Selling PROMISES are unlike any other financial services and require much more ease and convenience, which customers expect, especially at the point of settling claims.
You need to be prepared for the time that insurers will request for your premium to be paid along with the experiences you have had using insurance.
It is better to share your experiences than let them get information about you and use it at the point of claims settlement. The principle of Utmost Good Faith demands this.
As we navigate into the era of sustainability, with regards to growth, it is important to be aware, and informed, that your experiences matter.
I remain…
Assuredly YoursÂ
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