By Olivia Nnorom
Low insurance uptake in Nigeria has remained a concern for stakeholders in the industry. With insurance penetration in the country below one percent, industry stakeholders are constantly in search of ways to change the narrative.
To help stakeholders understand what the issues are and ways to navigate them, Carefirst Consult, a foremost claims management company concentrating on insurance claims denials, accessories, and subrogation right recovery, is putting the 2022 Claims Advocacy Conference focusing on claims management.
Themed “Catalysing insurance through better claims experience”, the conference is billed for 24 November 2022 at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The conference is expected to attract insurers, reinsurers, insurance brokers and agents, loss adjusters, claims arbitrators, regulators and insurance managers in telecom, aviation, construction, banking, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals.
It will seek to minimise the mistrust of insurance consumers regarding claims, increase opportunities for consumers to share their frustrations with claims handling with insurance operators, create opportunities for insurance companies to share the complexities of claims settlement with customers, and show how arbitration can be used to settle claims disputes without going to court.
The event will feature a lineup of notable speakers in the insurance industry and beyond, including Odunayo Bammeke, former GGM, risk management and insurance, NNPC; Ekeoma Ezeibe, managing director, Crystal Trust Insurance Brokers Ltd; Josephine Akinwunmi, principal partner, Josephine Akinwunmi & Co., and Edobong Akpabio, chairperson, Agricultural and Allied Group of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).
Speaking to Business A.M. ahead of the conference, Gus Wiggle, founder, Carefirst Consult, said because insurance is a promise sold, the conference will confirm whether insurance companies are staying true to the promise and whether it is just a myth that they don’t pay claims.
“Is it small prints? Is it lack of willingness to pay claims by the insurance companies? Is it lack of trust?” Wiggle said.
“The common response from those that don’t want to buy insurance is that insurance companies don’t pay claims. Is it true? Is it true insurance companies put too many hurdles to make claims because they don’t want to pay claims – is it true?” he said.
The Carefirst Consult boss also said that the event will provide a platform for insurance companies that don’t usually have the avenue to state their positions and clear the air.
