Revised Third Party Motor Insurance Rate Awareness Campaign May Start Soon
L-R: Deputy Director, Corporate Communications and Market Development, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), ‘Rasaaq, Salami; Managing Director/CEO Universal Insurance Plc, Ben Ujoatuonu and Deputy Director, Corporate Communications & Human Resources/Administration, Nigerian Insurers Association, Davis Iyasere at the Press Briefing April 6, 2023 in Lagos.
Indications have emerged that the awareness campaigns for the Revised Third Party Motor Insurance premium rate initially slated to start April 1, may commence any moment from now.
A member of the Communications and Publicity sub-committee of the Insurers Committee, who is also a Director at the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Mr. Rasaaq Salami, disclosed this while speaking on the activities of Insurers Committee shortly after its meeting in Lagos recently.
According to him, Publicity Committee has been working on general awareness for some time now. The Revised Third Party Motor Insurance premium rate is something that just came up towards the end of December. This is something that has to do with the entire industry, it’s not something that you just sit down and take a decision without proper consultations.
“If Insurers Committee meeting had held in January, the revised third party Motor Insurance awareness campaign would have been rounded up by now or getting to the end. It’s better late than never. Good a thing is that at the meeting today, there was an approval for commencement of the Revised Third Party Motor Insurance premium awareness campaign.
“Other issues for further discussion are the other aspects of the publicity which the Communications and Publicity sub-committee is working on but the approval has been given for the Revised third party motor insurance awareness campaign. We have initially set the take off time for April 1, but it’s just that the Insurers Committee meeting is holding today and adjustment has been made for the campaign to commence on or before May 1.
Meanwhile, speaking earlier to Insurance journalists after the Insurers Committee meeting, the Managing Director of the Universal Insurance PLC, who is also a member of the committee, Ben Ujoatuonu, highlighted some of the decisions taken at the meeting which included the approval for commencement of awareness campaign on the Revised third party motor insurance premium.
The awareness campaign, he said, is aimed at sensitizing the general public on the happenings in the market not only on the importance to cooperate with the operators on the revised third party motor insurance premium rate but also to educate the policyholders on what they stand to benefit by paying the new rate.
It should be recalled that on December 22, 2022, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) issued a circular called for upward review of the premium for third party motor Insurance with effect from January 1, 2023.
“Pursuant to its function of approving premium rate of insurance companies under Section 7 of NAICOM Act 1997, and other extant laws, the Commission hereby issues this circular on the new motor insurance premium rate effective from January 1, 2023.”
The circular, signed by NAICOM’s Director of Policy and Regulation, Mr. Leo Akah, states further, “Third party insurance policies inclusive of Ecowas Brown Card, EBC, shall be as follows: private motor, N15,000, Third Party Property Damage (TPPD) limit N3 million; Own goods, N20,000, TPPD limit N5 million; staff bus, N20,000, TPPD limit N3 million.”
The circular added that commercial trucks and general cartage will pay N100,000 premium for N5 million TPPD limit; tricycles to pay N5,000 for N2 million TPPD limit, and motorcycles to pay N3,000 for N1 million TPPD limit, “special types’’ of vehicles will pay N20,000 premium while the TPPD limit has been raised to N3 million.
The circular also noted, “For a comprehensive motor insurance policy, the premium rate shall not be less than five per cent of the sum insured after all rebates and discounts.”
