Insurance products and services are critical risk mitigation mechanisms for businesses to survive and succeed during tough times, experts said.
The experts, who spoke during a recent Coronation Insurance webinar on Tuesday, examined the critical role of insurance in helping businesses survive and prosper, especially in challenging economic environments.
On his part, the managing director, Coronation Insurance Plc, Olamide Olajolo, said the event was very dear to the organisation as it provides solutions to the public and business owners who are faced with myriad of challenges, stressing that, amid the numerous headwinds confronting people and businesses, insurance remains a social safety net.
Noting that the webinar was designed to expose dynamics of insurance; easy means of accessing claims; role of technology; on boarding of policyholders amongst others, he stressed that his insurer is ever ready to insure businesses of Nigerian people, such that insurance will be there for them in challenging times.
Similarly, the co-founder/CEO at Curacel, Henry Mascot, who was the Keynote speaker, said individuals and organisations are really in a challenging time, hence the need for insurance to mitigate rising risks.
He submitted that the COVID, recent wars around the world and financial crisis have put many businesses on the edge, adding that, Nigeria being tagged the poverty capital of the world and many Nigerians working hard to come out of poverty, Insurance remains one of the best means to escape the dragnet of poverty.
To him, an insurance mechanism is the best way to roll back poverty as it helps to restore individuals and organisations to the state they were before they suffered a risk, imploring people to ensure that assets that drive their production are insured to enable them to remain in business.
“If we agree that we are in challenging times, we should see insurance as a means of protecting our assets,” he asserted.Technology, according to him,is really transforming the insurance process, making it easy for people to access insurance products, report claims and also access claims.
Founder of Mesh Venture Tochi Ginigeme, called on business owners to map out their risks, which would enable them to understand the insurance products needed to mitigate the risks.
She urged insurance companies to embrace strategic partnerships that would enable them to ride on the back of technology, while charging insurance companies to invest directly in start up firms, which would help in providing insurance needs for the firms.
Head of Corporate team, Coronation Insurance, Anthony Olasele, said insurance, due to its risk transfer and pool mechanism, has the potential to help business owners from falling backward when risks occur.
He called on start up firms to ensure they have business interruption policy, adding that such a policy helps in providing claims to business owners whenever their businesses are disrupted.