CONSUMER PREPARATION OF INSURANCE SERVICES IN NIGERIA
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CONSUMER PREPARATION OF INSURANCE SERVICES IN NIGERIA
ABSTRACT
The primary goal of this research is to determine the causes of consumers’ negative perceptions of insurance services and how to shift them from negative to positive. Data were acquired from 224 Warri consumers and insurance company clients.
They were chosen using the simple random selection process, which involved administering questionnaires. The data collected was computed and analysed using percentages and the chi-square statistic.
The main outcomes of his study revealed that insurance services are poorly evaluated by consumers. consumers purchase insurance policies to prepare for the unexpected, and some percentages of consumers say they avoid police embarrassment because certain insurance products are required by law.
The study found that customers are largely aware of car insurance services provided by insurance companies. Also, the majority of respondents were disappointed with the quality of services provided by insurance firms.
The insurance companies’ public information systems were found to be extremely inadequate. customer awareness and patronage were found to have a positive relationship with customer perception of insurance services.
The two null hypotheses that there is no relationship between consumers’ perception of the purpose of insurance services and their level of patronage,
as well as the second null hypothesis that there is no relationship between consumers’ perception of the purpose of insurance services and their level of coarseness, were both rejected at the 0.05 level of significance. Based on these results, it is advised that:
1. Insurance companies should improve public information devices by using electronic and paper media to educate the public about the value of insurance services.
2. To influence people’s perceptions of insurance, insurance companies should enhance their advertising and public relations efforts in areas such as economic development and social responsibility.
3. Insurance firms should put into operation the conditions associated to every policy and ensure that genuine claims are settled without resorting to stagnation.Chapter one
1.1 Background of the Study
Insurance businesses operate all around the world, and their goal, like any other private enterprise, is to generate a profit. They accomplish this by the prudent use of previews, which have been paid for by their many clients.
A man purchases an insurance policy (life or non-life), most likely because he is certain that if the covered event occurs, the insurer will not hesitate to indemnify him.
Furthermore, insurance is intended to provide men and women with a means by which they can methodically achieve financial security for themselves. Its purpose is to serve as a vital channel for making capital available to businesses and industries in an economy. In essence, insurance is a major risk management tool and the foundation of business, as it is designed to cover foreseeable business hazards.
However, of all the industries whose activities are the lifeblood of all financial economics, insurance advising has succeeded in drawing the most distinct and widespread cynicism in Nigeria.
Consumer impression of insurance companies, their services, and even their practitioners is one of distrust, which is frequently shown in an outright rejection of what insurers do.
Certain people would not have worked in the insurance sector if particular types of insurance were not required by law. However, the insurance market is undoubtedly the most unfamiliar to Nigerians.
The general public, out of all the financial institutions in Nigeria’s economic system, is the unit within the financial sector that most people do not want to contact with due to misconceptions and a lack of information about the services given by industry.
According to (Yakabu, 1988:20), while the presence of insurance companies in the financial system is notable, the level of customer perception and patronage of their services is not encouraging as such. Most insurance companies’ operations have at some point drawn criticism from both the press and people.
Even some people believe that the insurance industry is a cheating and deceiving institution that cannot keep the contract made with the insured, while others believe that insurance is for people who can afford the time and money to hire lawyers to contest claims in court, which can result in endless adjournment.
In fact, we’ve practically reached the point where finances are associated with dishonesty. This idea can be supported by the fact that one of the most common criticisms levelled against insurance images is from the myth that insurers exist solely to make money (premium) from the public without any desire to reciprocate by effectively settling claims.
As a result, even among Nigeria’s reputed educated, knowledgeable, and enlightened citizens, there has been widespread outrage, with judges hearing insurance-related cases claiming that insurers are rogues and swindlers.
In fact, these appear to be Nigerians’ perceptions, either based on their own experience or the experience of people they know regarding claim payment.
One may then wonder what the insurance industry in Nigeria is doing to correct all of these negative perceptions, which are surprising and widespread even among Nigerian diets.
I feel the sector is old enough for people to comprehend what it represents, having done business in Nigeria since 1921. At 84, it is disheartening to see that the business is still striving to establish a positive image in the eyes of Nigerian consumers. However, insurers have expressed alarm about the illusive hunt.
To them, it is evident that the future of their industry is dependent on a rapid improvement in its image in the eyes of the people it is supposed to serve. Well, assuming all of the aforementioned misconceptions and allegations against the insurance sector are true. As a result, the industry world does not favour consumers who are insured.
Certainly, the realisation of this motivated the researcher to choose this topic, with the hope that the study’s findings will be of great assistance to insurance companies and will also encourage insurance firms to conduct (further) immediate research to identify additional areas of dissatisfaction and take appropriate action.
1.2 Statement of the Problems
Insurance firms provide services such as tyre, accident, marine and aviation insurance. They offer these services to ensure that individuals’ financial losses are properly and evenly spread among the covered community. They also encourage and promote commercial operations by providing financial protection for business owners.
Despite the fact that insurance companies provide critical services, they continue to get little public interest. How can these issues be resolved? Also, why are they perceived as a doubtful and dishonest organisation?
1.3 The Objective of the Study
The primary goal of this study work includes:
1. To determine whether there is a relationship between consumers’ perceptions of insurance services and their degree of patronage.
2. Determine if there is a relationship between consumers’ perceptions of insurance services and their level of awareness.
3. Determine if there is an adverse relationship between consumers’ impressions of insurance and their settlement.
4. Determine whether there is a relationship between consumers’ assessments of insurance policies and their feelings of apathy towards insurance companies.
5. To make recommendations.
1.4 Statement of Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a tentative assertion about the universe that may or may not be true. For the sake of this research, the following hypothesis will be tested.
Ho Consumer view of insurance services is negatively related to their amount of patronage.
Ho Consumer perception of insurance services is positively related to their level of patronage.
Ho There is a negative correlation between coinsurance perception of insurance services and amount of awareness.
Ho Coinsurance impression of insurance services and awareness levels are positively related.
1.5 Significance of the Study
This issue piques the researcher’s attention because it focuses on services rather than physical products. Because, until this point in Nigeria’s economic development, most people believed that marketing meant just selling physical or tangible items.
The researcher’s objective is to demonstrate that marketing as a discipline pervades all elements of corporate operations, particularly in industries that rely heavily on selling, such as the insurance industry.
This will allow the insurance business to increase its share of the financial market by effectively and efficiently implementing relevant strategies that will shift the current negative view to a positive one.
It will also be extremely beneficial to insured consumers in maintaining positive relationships with their insurance providers, resulting in mutual gain and understanding.
1.6 Definition of Terms
This study does not exempt from investigating the technical aspects of insurance as a discipline. However, because it is critical for good understanding, we should investigate it further.
The marketing components are the main focus of this study since they relate to consumers’ perceptions of insurance services. The following definitions will be critical to the investigation.
1) Perception: The process by which an individual selects, organises, and interprets intimations and input to build a meaningful picture of the world (Kotler 1988:188).
2) Insurance Consumer: Anybody in a position to enjoy or benefit from the services provided by the insurance sector today is an IPSO-FACTO and Insurance Consumer, i.e., anyone whose interests are protected by an insurance policy. (ODELE; 1991:6).
3) Insurance: It is a contract in which one party, the INSURERE, agrees in consideration of an unmediated payment of a smaller sum of certain equivalent periodical payments called PREMIUM paid to him by the other party, the INSURED, to indemnify the insured against losses or damages resulting from the occurrence of contingent events (ONIMINDE, 1988:7).
4) Contract: A contract is an agreement between two or more people to indemnify the individual who suffers a loss. (ANSON, cited in ONIWINDE 1988:7).
5) Insurer: This term refers to an insurance firm or an individual who offers insurance coverage. (ODELE, 1991:90).
6) Insurer: This is the policyholder, the individual or entity who will profit from the insurance coverage (ODELE 1991:90).
7) Premium: The regular amount paid in consideration of insurance (ODELE, 1991:90).
8) Insurance policy: This is the written contract of insurance supplied to policyholders by the insurer. (Oktler, 988:91)
9) Insurance patronage: Support by insuring with an insurance company (OTler, 1988:91).
10) Insurance company: This is a firm that provides services, i.e., a firm that has pledged to indemnify the insured public against potential losses.
11) Peril A danger represents the principal cause of loss, such as fire, theft, or accident. (Onitnicise 1988: 8).
12) Risk – Is the uncertainty surrounding the occurrence of an event that results in economic loss. (Oniwinde 1988: 8).
13) Indemnity: This principle is applicable to all types of insurance save life and personal accident. It entails placing the insured in the exact same position he was in just before the loss. (Odele 1991: 90).
14) Insurable interest. A person who wishes to purchase insurance services must expect to gain from the existence of the life or property to be insured, as well as to incur certain losses. Kotler (1988:91).
15) Uberime Fides: This creates a mutual obligation (Utmost God Paith) on both parties to divulge all material information. (Oniwinde 1988: 7).
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