Chief Executive Officer of BAC Insurance Consultants Limited, Mrs Victoria Bolajoko Adegbaju is working assiduously to expunge unfavourable impressions held by a large section of the Nigerian public about insurance. She is the author of ‘Know Your Insurance Rights’, a reader-friendly book that provides answers to myriad of questions bothering on insurance. In this interview, she speaks on issues hindering the industry and calls on regulators to rise up to the task of improving it in entirety.

By Josephine Agbonkhese

What’s actually the focus of your organisation?

My mission is to meet people’s needs as far as insurance is concerned. I actually have a strong passion for educating people about insurance. So, I do consultations, seminars and workshops.

Having worked in the industry for over 15 years, what’s your assessment of the sector in Nigeria?

The insurance sector in Nigeria is obviously not the same as the insurance industry outside the country. This is because we do not believe in insurance in Nigeria and we have not been able to do the things that we should be doing. Outside Nigeria, we get a number of offers from clients but here in Nigeria, it is the insurance personnel that would beg the client to do business.

A lot of times, people see the sector as unstable but overtime there has been a number of enlightenment and awareness and I think things are getting better unlike what we had in the past when I just came into the industry. I actually started my career with Great Nigeria Insurance Plc where I rose to the position of the branch manager. I was later employed at the Intercontinental Life Assurance Limited as a management staff and head of public sector marketing before joining Mutual Benefits Assurance Limited in 2012.

But what could be responsible for this?

Like every other profession, there are good and bad people operating in the sector. Sadly, it is because of the terrible experiences members of the public have had with some practitioners in the past. You can imagine if such happens to one, two, three and more people. It becomes difficult to change people’s mindset as the news goes round. So, when people are saying the same thing, you can imagine the kind of effect this can have on the sector.

How have you tried to improve the situation in your little corner?

I once had a client who had a vehicle theft case. The car was stolen and I was in marketing and servicing and I took it upon myself to see that the claim was settled. From the beginning to the end, I made sure everything was in place and I have many other cases like that. I have also assisted people and even those I did not know before, especially those who have had nasty experiences with insurance operators in the past. I take it upon myself to create a better impression.

 Could that goal also be what inspired your book on insurance?

Yes. The book is meant to create awareness about the insurance sector in Nigeria. It is quite easy to read. Like I said, most times, people run away from insurance because of the wrong notion they have about it. But once they get better information, that mindset immediately changes. Frankly, the rates charged for insurance are very meagre compared to what we do; they are not equal to the risks we handle.

What has been your motivating factor?

That’s my husband. Though he is an engineer, he believes so much in me and the career that I have chosen.

He encourages me to be the very best in whatever I do and that has been responsible for the progress I have made so far. As a branch manager, I was the best and everywhere I had worked before setting up my company, I was usually the best. Even when I get fed up or discouraged, he gives me the push to go the extra mile.

Let us talk about other challenges bedevilling the sector…

There are a number of challenges and these include awareness about how the sector operates, as well as unhealthy competition among underwriters, among workers and the other people in the industry. I think it is the work of regulators to really make things better, though. I would say that a number of us are trying our best, but it is the regulators that should set a pace and make things better.

Your schedule as the CEO of an insurance consultancy firm must be quite demanding; how do you blend this with personal life

Well, I would say that God has been very good to me. At the initial stage of my career, it was quite hectic but my mother-in-law was there for me. We lost her in 2012 and that created a yawning gap, but luckily, my children are grown up now.

She was a wonderful mother-in-law and she did her best to help bring up my children.