The National Insurance Commission, NIC, says since the introduction of the Motor Insurance Database in January this year, over 270,000 stickers have been issued electronically in five months.
According to the NIC, the electronic database has ensured business continuity particularly during the partial lock-down amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Motor Insurance Database was introduced to eliminate the phenomenon of fake insurance in the system.
A Deputy Commissioner at the National Insurance Commission, Michael Kofi Andoh, told Citi Business News the new system is serving its purpose.
“The feedback we have had from the non-life insurance company so far is that it has been very useful especially during the lock-down. This is because insurance companies would sell motor insurance policy without going to their offices or they could do all that and issue their stickers on the motor insurance database. So, it has been a very big positive for the business continuity aspect of the non-life insurance company during the lock-down. So far, the database is doing quite well, and I think we have issued about 272,000 stickers on new policies. So, it is doing well; and I think it has been a good and timely intervention for motor insurance,” he stated.
The Motor Insurance Database
The Motor Insurance Database was implemented on January 1, 2020. It was introduced to provide a centralized system from which security agencies and the general public including passengers of vehicles can check the validity of a vehicle insurance instantaneously.
The checks can be done through the use of a mobile phone, receipt of acknowledgement of transaction via a text message or by scanning a QR code on the insurance sticker by the Police MTTD.
The new system also enables the police and other interested parties to check on the spot the legitimacy of a vehicle’s motor insurance, by simply dialing a code.
Statistics from the NIC has shown that out of 2.3 million vehicles registered in 2018; only one million were issued with genuine motor insurance stickers.
COVID-19 slows down selling of Life Insurance policies
Earlier this week, the National Insurance Commission said Ghana’s Insurance sector has taken some hit due to the novel Coronavirus pandemic, specifically life insurance.
According to the Commission, this could significantly affect Ghana’s insurance penetration and insurance companies.
A Deputy Director of the NIC, Mr. Michael Kofi Andoh, explained that, because life insurance policies are mostly sold physically to the public, the three-week partial lockdown and the subsequent restrictions on movement has slowed down business.