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Chuks Udo Okonta
Experts have canvassed the use of insurance as tool for sharing prosperity, even as they believed that anything capable of causing trouble to lives and properties should be adequately managed with insurance.
The experts, who unanimously considered insurance as oxygen to all human activities, said this today at the Coronation Insurance Plc Webinar Series with the theme: ‘Shared Prosperity through Financial Inclusion: Protecting Your Business and Wallet Using Insurance’.
The Founder/Chief Executive Officer Lendsqr Adedeji Olowe, who was the keynote speaker, said insurance is a key element in the financial inclusion strategy, stressing that insurance remains one of the best tools for wealth creation.
He noted that insurance is required in all human undertakings, adding that a life without insurance is hopeless, comparing such a life to a driver who drives without using a seat belt.
According to him, a driver can drive for years without using a seat belt, but the day he gets involved in an accident, there would be nothing to save him from such disaster.
He submitted that it would be difficult to build a last wealth without leveraging insurance as risk mitigating measure, stressing that insurance helps a great deal in preserving wealth.
Olowe submitted that those financially excluded don’t have insurance and that make them vulnerable to poverty, stating that not having insurance could keep a generation families in abject poverty.
He said only the dead, does not need insurance, stressing that all living things require insurance to remain relevant.
On what should be done to spread prosperity through insurance, he suggested that there should be continuous insurance education and awareness, adding that there enforcement of compulsory insurances should be esteemed, robust deployment of technology; embedment of insurance in goods and services, robust story telling; enlistment of prominent citizens – clerics, transitional leaders and celebs amongst other strategies.
He also implored insurance practitioners to live up to their responsibilities in claims payment, stating that most people don’t buy insurance owing to the attitude of some erring insurance companies.
He went further to identify lack of knowledge on claims filling by policyholders as another reason for the complaints on claims settlement, whilst urging insurers to continue on insurance education.
Chief Executive Officer Sycamore.ng, Babatunde Moses, a member of panel of discussants, said insurance makes it easy for business owners to access credit.
He noted that no finance house would grant credit facility to an individual without insurance to protect the facility.
According to him, individuals seeking micro credit, have to show proof of insurance especially loss of job insurance, before their request are granted.
He urged business owners to leverage insurance in growing their businesses, as it is difficult to replace lost items in present Nigeria without insurance.
Chief Executive Officer Triift Africa, Yemisi Isidi, said insurance is a system of paying now to save later.
She noted that insurance is the major resort for small business owners to keep the businesses afloat.
Managing Director Coronation Insurance Plc, Olamide Olajolo, said the broader objectives of the event are to create awareness of Coronation Insurance’s products, increase the mailing list for client acquisition, improve brand visibility and reputation, and position Coronation Insurance as a thought leader in the financial services space.
He noted that insurance is a pooling system that enables policyholders contribute funds which are used to cater for those who suffer mishap.
He called on the public to embrace insurance especially now that the economy is faced with high inflation leading to soaring cost of goods and services.
An Anchor on CNBC Africa, Wole Famurewa, who was the moderator of the event, also implored the public to leverage insurance in sharing prosperity, stressing that insurance remains one of the best way out of poverty.
