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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The House of Representatives has said that laws governing the insurance industry in the country are not in tune with modern realities.
The chairman, House Committee on Insurance and Acturial Matters, Darlington Nwokocha stated this, while speaking at a public hearing organised by the committee.
Nwokocha pointed out that, for instance, prescribed fines in the Third Party Act of 1945, are in Pound Sterling and not in Naira.
Consequently, the lawmaker said the House will take steps to review the acts to ensure they conform with modern realities.
According to him, “Having taken time to study the insurance Act 2003 and other pieces of insurance legislation in Nigeria, we can confirm that much of the provisions of the insurance laws are out of tune with modern realities.
” In particular, the sanctions regime is weak. In some cases, as with the Motor Vehicle (Third Party Insurance) Act 1945, the prescribed fines are stated in pound sterling instead of Naira.
“Also, the amounts stated as fines in the various laws are grossly insufficient. Some provisions prescribed something as low as N2 and N5 respectively. In the modern time, the philosophy of penal punishment advocates effective and dissuasive sanctions. “
He observed that despite the poor performance of the insurance sector in the country, when compared to other “jurisdictions”, it could do better with a more robust framework.
“We are confident that given a robust regulatory and institutional framework, the insurance sector in Nigeria will soon emerge as one of the major drivers of the Nigerian economy,” Nwokocha stated.
