04/04/2026
Read and understand your policy documents. INSURANCE is working 100% in Nigeria.
If you still believe insurance does not work in Nigeria… then you are not broke, you are just uninformed.
Let me explain:
After I shared my last post, I saw many comments saying
“Insurance companies in Nigeria are scammers”
“It doesn’t work here like abroad”
And I just smiled…
Because most people don’t have an insurance problem…
They have a knowledge problem.
Let me tell you something that might shock you…
Insurance works in Nigeria.
Not 50%… not 70%… 100%.
But here is the part many people don’t want to hear…
Insurance will only work for you to the level of your understanding.
You see, before you even think of buying insurance, you need more knowledge than someone entering the stock market.
Yes… I said it.
Because in insurance, it’s not just about paying premium…
It’s about understanding:
What exactly you are buying
What is covered and what is not covered
The conditions that must be met before you get paid
And the process to follow when things go wrong
Most people skip this part…
Then when problem happens… they shout "scam"
As your Financial Literacy Advocate, Let me break something down for you…
The same way accounting principles are the same all over the world…
That is the same way insurance works.
The same foundation used in the US, UK, South Africa…
Is the same thing used in Nigeria.
Because... Money does not have two languages.
And.. Risk does not have two definitions.
Insurance is built on one principle globally…
Risk management.
So the problem is not Nigeria…
The problem is ignorance.
Now let me tell you the secret that nobody will tell you…
Every insurance company in the world is designed to do one thing…
Reduce how much they pay out.
Yes… read that again.
They are businesses… not charity organizations.
You pay premium… they manage risk…
And when something happens, they check:
Did you follow the policy?
Does this claim meet the conditions?
Is there any breach?
If you don’t understand your policy…
You have already lost before you even start.
Now here is where many people are completely blind…
Between you and the insurance company… there is a system.
There are professionals called Loss Adjusters.
These are not your enemies…
And they are not the insurance company’s friends.
They are independent professionals regulated in Nigeria by NAICOM.
Their job is simple…
To investigate what happened
To assess the damage
To ensure the insurance company does not cheat you
And also ensure you are not cheating the system
They stand in the middle…
Yet most Nigerians don’t even know they exist.
Let me ask you a simple question…
For those shouting “insurance is scam”…
How many of you have ever:
Read your policy document properly?
Engaged a loss adjuster when your claim was denied?
Reported the insurance company to NAICOM?
Be honest with yourself…
Most of you did nothing.
You just complained…
Now let me open your eyes to something deeper...
Insurance is not for enjoyment…
It is for survival.
It is not for when life is good…
It is for when life breaks.
That moment when your shop burns
That moment when accident happens
That moment when sickness drains everything
That is when you will understand the power of structure.
And here is the painful truth…
Even Mama Ngozi that sells tomatoes in the village can afford insurance.
Yes…
Some policies are as low as ₦2,000 monthly.
So the issue is not affordability…
The issue is awareness.
Let me say this clearly…
Anything you don’t understand will always look like a scam to you.
The same thing happened when people said stock market is scam.
Today… those who understood it are building wealth quietly.
That's why I have maintained that Financial literacy is not about arguing online…
It is about understanding how money, risk, and protection works.
That is why platforms like Fokona exist…
To break down complex financial concepts
Into simple language anybody can understand
Even Mama Ngozi.
In my next posts…
I will show you:
How to choose the right insurance company
How to pick the right policy
And how to get your money… even when they refuse to pay
Yes… including how they can be forced to pay more.
Because knowledge changes everything.
For now… just remember this…
Insurance is not a scam.
Ignorance is.
CREDIT:
Iking Ferry, on Fokona Website.
Iking Ferry is a Financial Literacy Advocate on a Mission to Build 10 Financially Free Africans via Fokona with the Right Knowledge.
