Insurance industry in Nigeria has allayed the fears of aviators on the issue of not providing enough policies to cover some insurable risks in the sector.
The aviators at the recently concluded 5th Chinet Aviacargo conference held at Eko Hotel and Suits, Victoria Island, called insurers to look beyond aircraft, cargo and terminal buildings when considering policies or products they offer to the industry in Nigeria. They insisted that there are many insurable risks in the industry left uncovered.
Speaking on some of the areas believed not provided with adequate policies, Chief Executive Officer of Centurion Security and Safety, Group Captain John Ojikutu (Retrd), counselled that besides insurance covers for aircraft and airport buildings, insurance companies should look beyond and bring policies that will provide covers for aircraft and air passengers at the airports.
speaking in the same vein, the Chief Accountable Officer, Overland Airways, reminded the insurers that the issue of bed strikes on the airside could be addressed with insurance policies.
A tour operator, Alhaji Saminu Kuta, added that passengers and their luggage should not be covered only when they are on board an aircraft, but when they are within the airport environment and also there should be policies to cover the risk of missing luggage.
The events organised by Amb. Ikechi Uko; witnessed strong participation of major stakeholders in aviation, insurance, hospitality and travel and tours gave stakeholders ample opportunities to address grey areas in the relationship between the aviation and insurance industries.
Addressing the concerns of the aviators on the issues raised at the even themed, “The Synergy between aviation and insurance,” the Deputy Commissioner, Technical, Nigerian Insurance Commission (NICOM) Dr. Usman Jankara Jimada, who represented the Commissioner, NICOM, Dr, Ayo Omosehin, said NICOM as regulator of insurance industry in Nigeria has the role to protect every insurance stakeholder in the country.
He however, said NICOM workks within the ambit of the laws, will always engage the authorities in the aviation industry with a view to agreeing what could be done.
He affirmed that the NIIRA 2025 has addressed all the issued raised even as he said that some of the issues are beyond the purview of the insurance industry but would be subjected to national discussion.
“All these things, I can assure you that Nigerian insurance industry have. The newly assented Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Acts of 2025 (NIIRA) 2025 has actually empowered NICOM to ensure compulsory insurances. I want to emphasise some things very critical, is that the underlying rational for compulsory insurance is because we don’t want any innocent member of the public to be injured without getting financial compensation. But as regulators we work within the ambit of the laws. One of the things I would assure you is that NIIRA 2025 actually now empowers NICOM to enforce compulsory insurance. Before now, these regulations were in place but authority to enforce them wasn’t there,” he said.
Jankara however, noted that most of the issues raised exist as insurance policies but which are hardly not requested for in the industry.
“One other thing is that the issues highlighted are already existing as insurance products. All what we need to do is authorities in aviation industry. we would engage them with a view to agreeing what could be done. even insurance for public buildings would cover some of the highlighted problems. I don’t know if it exists, but I am aware that in 2016, FAAN actually had public liability insurance for members of the public,” he added.
In her contribution to the discussion, founder and CEO of Peakthrust Insurance Brokers Ltd and President of Insurance Professional Ladies Association (PILA), Mrs Bimbo Onakomaiya noted that most of the concerns raised exist as insurance products which aviation stakeholders should demand for. She however, insisted that until there is strong synergy between the aviation and insurance sectors, some of the request may not be fully realised.
“In NIIRA 2025, we have sections that deliberately speaking about aviation, It all goes to show that aviation is well recognised. Your importance in the financial ecosystem of Nigeria is important. The banks may provide the funds, but the insurance provides the peace of mind,” Onakomaiya counselled.
