The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has said policyholders on life insurance coverage have spent a total of N265.39 billion as a Gross Premium Written (GPW) generated between January and September 2023 in the country.
This, the commission revealed in an industry document entitled: ‘Nigerian Insurance Market at a Glance – Q3, 2023,’ showed that individual life insurance class was the major driver of the insurance industry, contributing N265.39 billion, which was 36.4 per cent of the recorded N729.1 billion Gross Premium Written (GPW) so far in the industry.
Life insurance is an insurance contract in which the insured transfers and the insurer assumes, the risk of death for a specified period.
As in other insurance businesses, the insured transfers the risk to the insurer, and receives a life insurance policy, upon payment of a premium.
Apart from the insured and the insurer, there is usually a beneficiary who is the person (or persons) who is to receive the policy proceeds if the insured event (death) occurs within the policy period, as a means of wealth security for their families
NAICOM explained that group life was second with 34.5 per cent; oil and gas, 28.9 per cent, fire, 23.6 per cent and motor 18.1 per cent.
The commission stressed that the industry also had gross claims of N365.5 billion and net claims of N259.0 billion.
The regulator submitted that the industry’s total size was N2.8 trillion, which revealed that total assets for non-life were N1.74 trillion and total assets for life were N1.07 trillion.
It said the industry’s total paid-up capital was N422.3 billion; total capital, was N848.9 billion, and total statutory deposit was N26.7 billion.
In the document, the commission stated that the ratio of total claims to the total premium was 50.1 per cent; the ratio of claims paid to reported was 70.9 per cent; the ratio of claims paid to reported, non-life, 55.0 per cent, and the ratio of claims paid to report, life, 94.9 per cent.
