Anchor Insurance policyholders claim N1.42bn over insured risks

Policyholders of Anchor Insurance Company Limited who suffered Insured risks in 2022 financial year, were compensated to the tune of N1.42billion.

The claims paid showed a 42.60 percentage rise when compared to the N997.42million compensated it made in 2021 financial year.

This N1.42billion claims also represents about 11 percent of the N13.15bn gross written premium the company generated in the year under review.

The N13.15billion premium translated to a 25.85% growth over the N10.45billion declared of 2021.

Speaking at the company’s 33rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos recently, its chairman, Dr. Elijah Akpan, informed the Shareholders that the risk-bearing outfit’s Profit Before Tax went up by 37.82 per cent from N1,02billion in 2021 to N1.41billion, stating that Profit After Tax increased to N1.22billion from N867.55million in 2021, showing a 41.01 per cent leap.

According to him, “whereas the Shareholders’ Funds jumped astronomically by 102.28% from N6.45bn recorded in 2021 to N13.05bn in 2022, the Company’s Total Assets grew to N18.56bn from N15.49bn in the corresponding year of comparison, representing a 19.81% increase.”

While stating that the company’s Solvency Margin moved up by 38.85% from 157% position in 2021 to 218% in 2022, the chairman noted that, “as a company that keeps its words, we paid out N1.42billion as claims to our genuine affected policyholders as against the N997.42million response from us in the previous year, showing 42.60 per cent rise in claims paid.”

He explained that, “as the volume of businesses transacted in 2022 outweighed what was done in 2021, it was only analytically natural that claims that would come from such a high transaction would equally be more.”

At a time most companies find it difficult to meet dividends’ demand, Dr. Elijah said: “we paid a dividend of 4kobo per share in line with our yearly practice of ensuring that Shareholders enjoyed their reason for investing in the Company,” assuring that the board would not fail to do more than the current figure whenever there was any quantum profit margin.

Speaking further at the meeting, the company’s Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Ebose Augustine Osegha, reiterated the socio-economic daunting situations which imposed untold hardship on the populace and the business community in 2022, saying, ‘we can only thank God for the eventual positive results recorded on all key indices.’

He explained that the company carried out a rebranding exercise on its logo and came up with a new world class Television Commercial which were launched during the year, stating that “these deliberate activities caused exponential excitement for the Anchor Insurance brand nationally as well as internationally and consequently shot up its awareness status, acceptance rating and market performance.”

He further added that in the course of the year being reported, the company created the Local Passengers’ Flight Welfare Scheme to cater for the different risks faced by passengers on the local flight routes, promising that ‘in 2023, we will look further into introducing more people-centred insurance products to the market.