By Ngozi Onyeakusi—The  Minister of Finance, Budget and Planning, Dr (Mrs) Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed has described prompt claims payment as the best advertisement for instance industry.

Ahmed made the call today at the commissioning of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) portal in Abuja.

“Indeed, prompt claims payment is the best advertisement for the industry, therefore all genuine claims that have been duly verified and due process followed, should be paid promptly.

The Commission must put in place mechanisms to ensure Insurance companies meet their obligations to policyholders by paying claims promptly as that is the major reason they exist in the first place.
claims payment determines the valuable structure of the industry in the economy.

She noted  that the Portal will serve as a platform for interconnecting all industry stakeholders to support real-time aggregation of data, automate its business processes and provide access to statistical data of the sector.

The commissioning of the Portal, according to her would serve as a springboard for industry wide adoption of technology and innovation for efficient and effective service delivery, ease of transacting business and customer experience and satisfaction.
“The industry should provide quick turnaround time on their services, grant access to information when required without any inhibitions and maintain effective real-time communication with its customers.
Dwindling Government revenue profile demands that the Commission must look into ways of increasing its revenue through the use of technology and the Portal in particular.

I urge the Commission to ensure the Portal is connected to other government databases like the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) NIN Database, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Passport Database, Nigeria Integrated Customs Information system, FRSC’s National Vehicle Identification System, the National Vehicle Registry, State Licensing Databases among others in order to provide value added services to all Insurance Industry stakeholders and enhance revenue generation.
In addition, the NAICOM Portal must also serve as the central database and sole repository of all Insurance Data connected to government databases in the country.
Meanwhile, you will agree with me that the unsatisfactory response to settlement of claims by underwriters had greatly contributed to the prevailing poor public perception and lack of trust and confidence in the insurance Industry.