THE National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has charged insurers to ensure that premium quotes/rates for insuring government assets and liabilities are supported with appropriate data/exposure analysis and other underwriting information.
This was contained in the NAICOM’s guidelines for insurance of government assets and liabilities for ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of Government and Other Stakeholders.
The commission added that no insurance operator shall impose, quote, offer, pay or receive any rate/amount which is not within the range of rates earlier submitted to the commission in accordance with the rate filing requirements stipulated in the market conduct guidelines.
The regulator noted that it shall be illegal to inflate the premium payable by an MDA in respect of the insurances of the government assets and liabilities.
NAICOM urged insurance firms to conduct their relationship with MDAs in line with the provisions of market conduct and business practice guidelines, stressing that it shall be illegal to solicit, offer, pay or receive any rebates or discount which is not reorganised by extant insurance laws and regulations.
It warned that any insurance institution that fails/neglects to comply with any provision of the guidelines shall be penalised in accordance with extant insurance law and regulation.
The commission stated that such penalty on non-performing operators could be extended to blacklisting the defaulters from handling government insurance and/or the suspension or withdrawal of their operating licenses, as the case may be.
It also threatened to drag any ministry, department and agency of government that contravene the rules before Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), to ensure there is no weak link in the implementation of the set guidelines.
According to NAICOM, “it shall be illegal to inflate the premium payable by an MDA in respect of the insurances of the government assets and liabilities.”
It pointed out that an MDA shall not pay premiums in excess of the actual premium on an insurance policy that may result in refund of the excess amount paid or with the intent of returning the excess in any form, by cash or otherwise to the insured, its agents or any party thereafter.
The NAICOM maintained that any MDA that acts contrary to the stipulated guidelines shall be deemed to have contravene the regulation.
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