By Joshua Yousouph
Findings by Shipping Position Daily have revealed that importers now have stronger protection against losses arising from professional errors in cargo insurance arrangements, following a new requirement compelling insurance brokers to maintain a minimum professional indemnity cover of N100 million under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
The development comes amid the increasing importance of insurance in Nigeria’s maritime and import trade, where cargo owners depend on insurance arrangements to mitigate risks associated with the movement and handling of goods through the international supply chain.
With the new requirement, importers engaging insurance brokers for cargo and related maritime insurance services are expected to benefit from a stronger professional accountability framework, particularly where disputes arise over advice provided in the course of arranging insurance protection.
The National President of the National Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mrs Ekeoma Ezeibe, disclosed this while highlighting the implications of the new insurance law for consumers, including businesses involved in international trade and maritime transportation.
According to Ezeibe, the law requires insurance brokers to maintain professional indemnity cover of not less than N100 million, or 50 per cent of their previous year’s annual brokerage income, where the latter is higher.
She explained that the provision was particularly significant for policyholders who rely on insurance brokers for professional advice on protecting their assets and cargo against risks associated with transportation and international trade.
For importers, the provision could offer an additional layer of protection, in cases where wrongful or negligent professional advice by an insurance broker contributes to losses involving imported cargo.
Ezeibe said the new law was “a transformative law” that had placed greater emphasis on protecting consumers within the insurance industry. She said, “The Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025 is a transformative law and which has considered more than ever before the interest of the consumers.”
According to her, the professional indemnity requirement would protect consumers against consequences arising from wrongful advice provided by insurance brokers.
“The Act has made sure that we have protected ourselves immensely with professional indemnity covers that protect us against wrongful advice that we give to consumers,” she said.
She explained that brokers were now mandated to carry not less than N100 million professional indemnity cover, “or even more depending on which is greater, whether 50 per cent of our previous year’s annual brokerage income is more than N100 million.”
The NCRIB president noted that many brokers already maintained professional indemnity policies worth millions of naira, stressing that this was driven by the significant responsibility they carried towards policyholders.
“The question is that most of us carry professional indemnities worth millions of Naira, not by compulsion, but because we realise the enormous responsibility that we hold towards policyholders,” she said.
