By ROSEMARY ONUOHA

Only one out of ten Nigerians have any form of insurance cover, a recent poll has shown. According to a poll results released by NOI Polls, it was revealed that almost nine in 10 Nigerians, which represents 86 percent, do not have any form of insurance cover.

The results also indicated that vehicle/car insurance, which represents 63 percent, is the most commonly purchased insurance cover while insurance companies, which represents 42 percent and agents, which represents 41 percent, are the key channels of insurance purchase.

The report also states that the major causes of the low market penetration and poor insurance culture are low awareness and poor enlightenment on the benefits of insurance and it stands at 40 percent.

The poll, however, reveals huge potentials for insurance companies and practitioners to design new products to target Nigeria’s bulging youth population.

The poll states “According to a recent media report, the insurance culture in Nigeria can best be described as almost non-existent. Despite the fact that the Nigerian environment has a high and increasing level of risk, less than two per cent of insurable risks are covered by insurance. Previous studies have shown that low awareness and lack of knowledge about insurance products characterize people’s opinions about the insurance sector.

“Apart from these, negative perceptions of Nigerians towards insurance have generally inhibited the growth of the sector. For instance many are of the opinion that insurance companies are more concerned in collecting premiums, than in settling claims thus affecting the general confidence in the insurance companies.

“There are also cultural and religious factors associated with the slow growth of the insurance sector. Anecdotal evidences suggest that the demand for insurance cover in Nigeria may be affected by various cultural and religious beliefs in the country in a way that it affects people’s perceptions on risk aversion. For instance, some religions have created a strong disapproval to life insurance, declaring that dependence on life insurance brings about a distrust of God‘s protecting care,” the poll revealed.

While stressing that overall the majority of Nigerians do not have any form of insurance cover, the Poll states that analysis across geo-political zones reveal that the South-West zone had the highest number of Nigerians that have insurance with 34 per cent, while the North-East with 96 per cent and North-West with 81 per cent both accounted for the highest proportion that indicated they have no insurance of any form.

Analysis based on age group showed that the highest proportion of insured Nigerians are within the age category of 45-54 years (34 per cent); followed by people within the 55-65 years age group with 26 per cent, and 65+ group with 22 per cent. On the other hand, there’s very low insurance penetration for youths within the ages of 18-21 (0 per cent) and 22-34 (four per cent); signaling huge market potentials for insurance companies and practitioners who can design products to target this market segment.

Only one out of ten Nigerians have any form of insurance cover, a recent poll has shown.
According to a poll results released by NOI Polls, it was revealed that almost nine in 10 Nigerians, which represents 86 percent, do not have any form of insurance cover.
The results also indicated that vehicle/car insurance, which represents 63 percent, is the most commonly purchased insurance cover while insurance companies, which represents 42 percent and agents, which represents 41 percent, are the key channels of insurance purchase.
The report also states that the major causes of the low market penetration and poor insurance culture are low awareness and poor enlightenment on the benefits of insurance and it stands at 40 percent.
The poll, however, reveals huge potentials for insurance companies and practitioners to design new products to target Nigeria’s bulging youth population.
The poll states “According to a recent media report, the insurance culture in Nigeria can best be described as almost non-existent. Despite the fact that the Nigerian environment has a high and increasing level of risk, less than two per cent of insurable risks are covered by insurance. Previous studies have shown that low awareness and lack of knowledge about insurance products characterize people’s opinions about the insurance sector. Apart from these, negative perceptions of Nigerians towards insurance have generally inhibited the growth of the sector. For instance many are of the opinion that insurance companies are more concerned in collecting premiums, than in settling claims thus affecting the general confidence in the insurance companies.
“There are also cultural and religious factors associated with the slow growth of the insurance sector. Anecdotal evidences suggest that the demand for insurance cover in Nigeria may be affected by various cultural and religious beliefs in the country in a way that it affects people’s perceptions on risk aversion. For instance, some religions have created a strong disapproval to life insurance, declaring that dependence on life insurance brings about a distrust of God‘s protecting care,” the poll revealed.
While stressing that overall the majority of Nigerians do not have any form of insurance cover, the Poll states that analysis across geo-political zones reveal that the South-West zone had the highest number of Nigerians that have insurance with 34 per cent, while the North-East with 96 per cent and North-West with 81 per cent both accounted for the highest proportion that indicated they have no insurance of any form.
Analysis based on age group showed that the highest proportion of insured Nigerians are within the age category of 45-54 years (34 per cent); followed by people within the 55-65 years age group with 26 per cent, and 65+ group with 22 per cent. On the other hand, there’s very low insurance penetration for youths within the ages of 18-21 (0 per cent) and 22-34 (four per cent); signaling huge market potentials for insurance companies and practitioners who can design products to target this market segment.