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But even if you’re sold on the idea of getting your business insured, you still have to find an insurance provider that offers the right sort of service for you. We’re making that process easier for you. In this article, we’ll narrow things down to 5 of the best insurance providers for SMEs in Nigeria. Here they are:
NEM Insurance
NEM Insurance has been active in Nigeria for more than 70 years. In that time, it has grown the public’s trust in it and served numerous client businesses. While it makes a broad array of insurance products, it marks a selection of them as suitable for smaller businesses. They include:- Agricultural Insurance: Comprising of multi-peril crop policy, poultry policy, fishery policy, livestock policy, and farm property and produce policy. Each of these policies stands as financial protection against the loss of the items they correspond to.
- Cash in Transit Insurance: This exists to ensure that any loss of cash while being moved from one location to another will be covered (reimbursed) by NEM.
- Group Personal Accident Insurance: If a business has this policy, it can be compensated in the case of an accident that leads to temporary disability, permanent disability, or death of the insured. This specifically covers the medical expenses of the persons involved.
- Product Liability Insurance: This product covers the financial costs that accrue to businesses when their product is defective and leads to the disability or death of a user, or loss of the user’s property.
Allianz Nigeria
Allianz has a global reach—it’s present in more than 70 countries, and serves over 122 million private and corporate customers. The company leverages this, as well as decades of experience across diverse markets, to offer what it calls world-class products. Some of them are:- Burglary Insurance: If your business gets burgled and property belonging to it is stolen, Allianz can help finance replacements if you have a burglary insurance deal with them.
- Fidelity Guarantee: The Fidelity Guarantee takes care of a scenario in which an employee of yours causes your business financial losses through acts of forgery, embezzlement, or fraud.
- Public Indemnity: If a member of the public is injured or loses their life on your premises, or has their property destroyed while there, a public indemnity coverage will enable you to settle whatever financial compensations are demanded by the victim or their representatives.
- SME Insurance: This is a three-in-one product that combines Allianz’s Group Life, Motor and Property Loss, and Fire and Burglary Insurance offerings. It is designed specifically for small businesses.
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AXA Mansard
Incorporated in 1989, AXA Mansard is one of the better-known insurance companies in Nigeria. Its products range from Life and Property Insurance for private individuals, to commercial solutions for corporate organizations. It also caters to SMEs through dedicated Business Insurance plans.- Business Insurance: AXA’s business insurance products are made specifically for enterprises in the Event Planning, Entertainment, Logistics, Food and Beverage, Beauty and Personal Care, and Education and Learning industries.
- Heath Management Organization (HMO): This is a health insurance plan that delivers health services to clients through a network of doctors, for a monthly or annual fee. It’s available to staff of businesses that have signed up for it with AXA Mansard.
Old Mutual
Old Mutual identifies as a pan-African financial services company. Its operations in Nigeria are focused on insurance and investments, and it has several products for businesses, classified under SME, commercial, or Employer offerings. Here are some of its SME products:- Shop Protect: Shop Protect protects shop owners against financial losses that may accrue to them due to fire, burglary theft, or personal accidents.
- SME Group Life: This life assurance policy shields the dependents of business owners or their employees from the financial burdens that arise due to the owners’ or employees’ death-in-service.
- Marine Insurance: Cargo owners who sign up for a Marine Insurance policy with Old Mutual can receive compensation from it if their cargo is lost or damaged while in transit, either on sea or in the air.
- Credit Life Assurance: The Credit Life Assurance policy is structured to pay off a borrower’s outstanding debt to a financial institution. SMEs that take out this policy can get their loans repaid through it in the future.
Leadway Assurance
Leadway is one of Nigeria’s biggest insurance corporations. Headquartered in Lagos, it boasts a really large customer base and over ₦100 billion in total premiums collected (more than any other provider in the industry). We’ll briefly discuss two of its SME products below:- L-Boss: According to Leadway, this policy grants businesses complete insurance coverage. That includes protection from loss of business assets, medical expenses, employee injury, and death benefits. The L-Boss policy is flexible, allowing customers to go for shorter coverage periods (monthly, quarterly, and semi-annually).
- Financial Risk and Suretyship: A collection of policies, encompassing default insurance, fidelity guarantee, employer’s liability, and custom bond (for importers and exporters).
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Final Words
As an entrepreneur, you must insure your business against unforeseen losses. Doing so will enable you to focus squarely on growing your venture, and greatly reduce the financial cost you may have to bear due to negative events. You can take out a policy from one of the insurance providers we’ve talked about here if their offerings match your needs. Just make sure to do due diligence before settling for any of them. Featured Image Source: Insurance Business AmericaGot a suggestion? Contact us: editor@connectnigeria.com