- Expert Seeks Full Disclosure of Insurance Firms
The Executive Director, Center for Pension Rights, Ivor Takor, has said it is important for the National Insurance Commission to ensure full disclosure of insurance companies.
Takor said this while speaking on the role of stakeholders in developing insurance and pension industries at a conference in Lagos.
He said, “The regulator should be more interested in what companies are doing rather than how much capital they hold. To develop the industry, the regulator must enforce full disclosure. Shareholders, policyholders and the regulator must understand what companies are doing. If the regulator doesn’t understand what a company is doing, it will be difficult to protect the interest of stakeholders and the integrity of the industry. Therefore, what is not understood should not be allowed.
“The regulator needs to make sure that investors get the right type of information (true and fair). Without that, the industry will become less attractive to investors.”
According to him, some policyholders were still not sure that insurance companies will pay claims when the need to do so arises.
Takor said, “They still have a mindset on what some refer to as hidden clauses in insurance, which are brought to the attention of policyholders only when claims are made. Policyholders and maybe shareholders need to have sensible risk returns profiles otherwise the industry will not be viable in the long run.”
He observed that the management and employees were beginning to carry out some level of aggressive marketing as against what obtained in the past.
According to him, this will go a long way in developing the industry.
