By Rosemary Onuoha

Operators in the insurance industry said they cannot commence implementation of the compulsory insurance policies unless the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) initiates some level of enforcement.

According to them it is the job of the regulatory body to initiate enforcement of policies while the practitioners take up the implementation as is the case in other sectors.

It will be recalled that NAICOM said it will commence verification and enforcement of the six compulsory insurance policies starting from Lagos State to other states of the federation, however, effort towards that direction is yet to be seen.

The six products are the Third Party Motor Insurance (Section 68 of Insurance Act, 2003); Builders Liability (Section 64 of Insurance Act, 2003); and the Occupiers’ Liability (Section 65 of Insurance Act, 2003). Others are the Workmen’s Compensation of Section 40 of the Workmen’s Compensation Act; Health Care Professional Indemnity of Section 45 of the Nigerian Health Insurance Scheme, 1995 and the statutory group life of Section 3(2) and Section 9(3) of the Pension Reform Act, 2004.

Mr. Wole Oshin, Managing Director of Custodian & Allied Insurance Plc who spoke to Vanguard, noted that the compulsory insurance policies will be embraced by the populace when the regulatory body creates the necessary awareness and enforcement.

In his words , “There is a down side to the implementation of the compulsory insurance policies under the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative of NAICOM because, if I am writing to a potential client and telling the client that ‘a law says you should do something, and if you don’t do it, this is what is going to happen to you,’ that approach in itself is anti customer relationship. So you are starting up on a bad note. But it would have been better having an independent enforcement agency, rather then we the operators being the enforcers.”

“I am not sure it is going to be very easy for you to go and put a gun on the head of a potential customer using the law to arm twist the person. It would have been easier to educate the person, and then have the regulator come and enforce it,” Oshin maintained.

Vanguard notes that the verification and enforcement of the compulsory insurance policies ought to have commenced on March 1, 2011 but was deferred because of the preparation for the country’s elections. NAICOM noted that it would start after the elections are over but that is yet to be seen.

Mr. Fola Daniel, Commissioner for Insurance had said that a formidable enforcement team made up of all the stakeholders would commence the enforcement of the six compulsory insurance policies.

The team, the insurance commissioner said would carry out a nationwide verification and enforcement on the level of compliance to all the six compulsory insurance starting with Lagos State.

“The enforcement team would ensure that individuals and organisations insure their properties in line with the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative (MDRI) of the Commission.”

He added that the initiative was for the preservation of our income, national wealth, human and material resources that these insurance products are made compulsory. Heavy fines and prison terms are imposed by relevant sections of the laws for non-compliance.

“I strongly believe that one of the aims of compulsory insurance is to instill responsibility into all stakeholders that are connected with putting up public buildings including the town planning authorities, the architects, the surveyors and the landlords.

Lagos State, it will be recalled, inaugurated six compulsory insurances on December 8, 2010 and Mr. Babatunde Fashola; Governor of Lagos State noted that one of the most populous states in the country with over 250,000 housing units could not afford to undervalue insurance.

Insurance, Fashola elucidated, provides employment, guarantees taxes and helps a state to manage its risks, adding “I therefore, challenge insurance practitioners to embark on massive awareness campaign and take the enlightenment programme to the grassroots.”

Mr. Fashola said that the insurance agency system should be modernised to reduce incidents of fake insurance. He however urged the insurance operators to embark on massive awareness campaign, most especially at the informal sector, while also ensuring good services to the society at large.

“It is sad that notwithstanding the existence of these compulsory insurance products, people still die in motor accidents or during collapsed buildings without any form of compensation,” he said

Mr. Tom Imokhai, Managing Director of Standard Alliance Insurance Plc did commended the Lagos State Government for the latest move to ensure that property owners across the state protect their buildings  by taking a third party insurance cover