The Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive Officer of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) Mr. Sunday Thomas has said that if insurers have to pay the enormity of the floods claims, it will shake the financial stand of the companies except the right premium is changed for flooding.
He also pointed out that the reason for insurance gap is that flood insurance is a special peril that is covered under a policy extension.
In 2021 floods alone gulped the global economy more than $82 billion.
Most floods cases may not be paid claims due to insurance gap as many who are exposed to flood risk are not covered by flood insurance.
Flood insurance is a type of property insurance that covers a dwelling for losses sustained by water damage specifically due to flooding but after simulating the insurance uptake decisions insurance is able to assess the level of flood risk that is not covered, also known as the insurance gap.
But for those who have insurance, Thomas said, their claims would be paid soon for as long as they submit the right document for their claims.
The CFI who during a recent programme in Lagos said, “The enormity of damage caused by flood is massive. There is insurance gap where what is covered and what is not covered also comes in.
“Floods in the country is certain, it comes year-in year-out. And insurance is not based on certainty,” he said.
There are about 18 states of the federation submerged in flood whilst many people were exposed to flood risk that are not covered by flood insurance.
The states are Kogi, Niger, Plateau, Benue, Ebonyi, Kano, Kaduna, Niger, Benue, Adamawa, Jigawa, Taraba, Bauchi, Anambra, Ebonyi, Yobe, Edo, Delta, Kogi, Lagos, Ogun, Ekiti and Plateau
