One of our regular contributors in Ghana, has lost his home and all his property in a fire. His family is safe. But homeless and short of money, Joe is wondering whether he should have been insured.

Most Africans like Joe don't see insurance as a priority until the worst happens. Does that sound like you?

Do you have any insurance? Do you trust insurance companies? Has insurance worked for you or is it a waste of money?

In the country where i live it is not a waste of money, you simply have to have everything insured, its compulsory. Like you cant get a mortgage without having an insurance company to insure you and if your car is not insured and you are caught you will be punished for it. Has all the advantages you can think of but how it works in African countries i do not know. My friend's car was stolen and she was given a car to drive for 10 days the next day and within the 10 days his cheque was ready, the cost of the car. On the other hand my neigbour back home had his car stolen at gun point in January and the claim was still being processed as at the last time i spoke to him a month ago, so it depends.

I think here in naija, you are better off without insurance and take your chances. What are the chances your car will get stolen ?

No! not here in the USA!

its better to have it and don't need it than to ever need it and don't have!

Insurance is the main thing in Nigeria, whether you accept or not, the poster Made mention about his friend quandary.i am sure he must have heard about insurance before but the African mentatilty is that Insurance don't work. But in Nigeria people make money in Insurance business as a form of comission for brining in Business and they work away when the claim arise. The insurance company will still have to pay the compensation without any sorry as long as the claim is covered.
Insurance work in Nigeria.For more info contact me (niyooah@yahoo.com)

Insurance does not work here in naija. Yes, it works as long as you don't have a claim. But once you file a claim, you'll be sorry you ever have one. Frustration will get the best of you. Investigation could take months if not years, come today, come tomorrow, you may even have to settle them just to get your claim if you are lucky.

Insurance is a valuable investment if the contract terms are respected. In the western countries it works very well with the support of the government. In some developing countries, it is not only a waste of money but also a waste of time and a source of more trouble and the government does not support the masses. Usually, the rich succeed in getting compensation while the poor are left to weather the storm.

Insurance works for cars, just choose the right insurance company.

A friend's car was stolen, luckily the month before he insured it. He got back N 1m after 90 days. Better safe than sorry.

The key thing is, as the car ages, you start to wonder the odds of it stolen and the amount it cost to insure it.

Do the maths well,

Insurance is not different from other establishments(including Govt.) in Africa esp Naija where everything is compromised.
The police, Judiciary and many more. Its all total effect of a society where corruption is legalised and standard compromised.

I got heavily punished few months ago for not renewing my car insurance a day after expiration. same will apply to Mr Brown or Chalie if they fail. No compromise.
But the problem is not limited to the company alone in Naija, regular payment must be ensured and not through the reps that will collect ur money but fail remit it back to the parent company on time.

Note also that if your payment is a day late, ur policy becomes invalid automatically. Ofcourse most employers don't pay salaries promptly which can never happen in the developed society, because, most of our earnings are spent on direct debit. We will get there one day in Jesus name. Lets keep praying for the nation/continent because that is the only place we could cal our own home. Jo

Insurance is not a waste of money. You are insuring against the unforseen (accident) or inevitable (death).

yeh it does sound like throwing money down the drain but it is worth it to be honest!!

@abujabooks We are talking about insurance in Nigeria here not in the advance nations like the UK or USA. It is a waste of resources in naija because the whole industry is fraud.