Leading insurance companies in Nigeria paid N141.761 billion in claims in the financial year of 2023, compared to N120.563 billion in 2022, representing a growth of 17.58%.
The high claims have impacted the premium growth rate of insurance firms, with economic challenges, inflation, and fraudulent claims being contributing factors.
This is according to data compiled by Nairametrics from the financial reports of AIICO Insurance Plc, Prestige Assurance Plc, NEM Insurance Plc, AXA-Mansard Plc, Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc, Cornerstone Insurance Plc, Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc, Coronation Insurance Plc, all of which are among the largest insurance companies quoted on the Nigerian Exchange.
The insurance companies also earned a total of N389.493 billion in gross premiums during the period under review, compared to N291.923 billion in 2022.
What this means is that the insurance companies paid 39.40% of their premium as claims expenses compared to 41.29% in the same period last year, a marginal decrease of 1.89%.
The high claims recorded by insurance firms in recent years have affected their premium growth rate.
Economic challenges
Throughout the year, economic challenges, including limited access to foreign exchange, intensified, further compounded by ongoing security issues within the country.
The inflationary pressures significantly strained the finances of many Nigerian households. This environment exacerbated the existing challenges encountered by insurance companies operating in Nigeria.
Additionally, the devaluation of the Naira and soaring energy costs added to the hurdles faced by these insurance firms in the country.
Nigerian insurance companies and their claims
Highlighted below are the eight Nigerian insurance firms by claims, based on published financial statements.
Prestige Assurance Plc- N7.223 billion
Prestige Assurance Plc reported a claim payment of N7.223 billion in 2023 from N8.819 billion reported in 2022, accounting for a drop of 18%. Its gross premium stood at N14.842 billion in 2023, a 19.27% increase over the N12.444 billion reported in 2022. Notably, 48.67% of its total gross premium written was incurred on claims in the nine-month period.
However, the company reported a profit after tax of N1.772 billion in 2023, a 211.97% increase from N568 million recorded in 2022.
NEM Insurance Plc – N9.357 billion
NEM Insurance followed with a net claim payment of N9.357 billion in 2023 from N6.188 billion recorded in 2022, an increase of 51.21%. Similarly, the gross premium written for the period was N62.949 billion as against N33.364 billion in the corresponding period of 2022, a year-on-year increase of 88.67%.
This indicates that the company paid 14.86% of its gross premium income as claims.
NEM Insurance reported a profit after tax of N18.502 billion, a 252.22% increase from N5.253 billion posted in 2022.
Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc – N12.700 billion
Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc recorded net claims of N17.065 billion in 2023, a 16.08% increase compared to N14.701 billion incurred in the corresponding period of 2022. The insurance firm recorded a gross premium of N44.580 billion from N33.481 billion in 2022, accounting for a growth of 33.15%.
What this means is that the company paid 38.28% of its gross premium income as claims in the period.
AXA Mansard Plc – N39.697 billion
AXA Mansard paid a whopping claim of N39.697 billion during the financial year 2023 as against N31.423 billion in 2022 an increase of 26.33%.
Its gross premium stood at N82.359 billion in the review period from N69.445 billion in the comparable period 2022, representing an increase of 18.59%.
Notably, 48.19% of the gross premium was spent as net claims in the review period.
The insurance firm, buoyed by net exchange gain, reported a 436.82% growth in net earnings to N14.097 billion for 2023 from N2.626 billion recorded in 2022.
AIICO Insurance Plc – N37578 billion
AIICO Insurance Plc saw its claims rise to N52.303 billion in 2023 from N46.701 billion in the same period of 2022, which is a growth of 11.99%. Its gross premium rose by 24.74% to N110.119 billion from N88.276 billion recorded in 2022.
Meanwhile, 47.49% of its gross premium was used as claims during the review period.
The company recorded a 53.44% increase in profit after tax to N8.602 billion in 2023 as against N5.606 billion posted in 2022.
Others include
- Cornerstone Insurance Plc: N5.838 billion (2022 N4,945 billion) +18.05%
- Coronation Insurance Plc: N5.778 billion (2022 N3,333 billion) +73.36%
- Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc: N4.500 billion (2022 N4.453 billion) + 1. 05%
What operators are saying
The Managing Director of Tangerine General Insurance Plc, Mr Mayowa Adeduro, reacted to the development in an exclusive chat with Nairametrics.
He said that the sustainable high claims were due to the incidences of the economic downturn which made people ask for claims even for minor things.
He noted that people’s maintenance culture has gone down due to the high cost of living spiked by inflation.
Adeduro said the impact of inflation has made the number of claims go higher. Inflation is a factor because prices of imported items have jumped due to a hike in the exchange rate, affecting the maintenance culture in Nigeria, he noted.
“Disposable income has gone down, and people are struggling to maintain what they have. For instance, if vehicles are not maintained very well and an accident occurs, the insurance firm will still pay the claims.
“Social vices such as armed robbery, kidnapping, setting houses ablaze, among others, are on the increase. All of these are having a negative economic impact on the economy. Due to economic hardships and fraud, insurance claims are also on the rise. There are incidences where some people set their houses ablaze and come for insurance claims.
“Low maintenance culture, job infidelity, theft of goods on transit, and breakdown of vehicles on the roads due to bad roads, all combined to help spike the increase in claims,” Adeduro said.
Speaking at an Annual General Meeting held in Lagos, Adetola Adegbayi, Chairman of the Nigeria Liability Insurance Pool, said that hyperinflation has significantly increased living costs and insurance claims in Nigeria due to high dependence on importation.
She noted that the incidence of fraudulent claims is also on the increase due to the impact of inflationary trends and unemployment.
“To abate this, the industry is advised to be proactive and more dynamic in its claims management, especially with the increased cover granted under the motor policy due to recently released rate review guidelines.
“The need for the industry to be more dynamic and pro-active in its claims management and administration is therefore of the essence,” Adegbayi stated.
