Five most common examples of insurance fraud in Nigeria

NAICOM as a regulator, does not have powers to prosecute offenders, but can only report suspicious activities to the EFCC

Kari, who led a team to the EFCC Headquarters on a visit, noted that there was an urgent need for the anti-graft agency to beam its searchlight on the sector, in order “to consolidate on the gains achieved”.

For as long as there have been insurance companies, there have been fraudsters looking to cheat the system and make money from false claims. From deliberately causing minor car accidents to staging home fires, insurers are aware of every trick in the book.

Let’s take a look at five of the most common examples of insurance fraud in Nigeria:

1. Stolen cars

Nigeria insurance scammers will sell cars onto a criminal body shop to be broken into parts before claiming to their insurer that the car was stolen.

2. Minor car accidents

Some fraudsters will stage minor car accidents in order to make insurance claims.

This can involve breaking suddenly so that the car behind runs into the back of the vehicle. Not only can this lead to claims for vehicle damage, it can also see fraudsters making personal injury claims.

3. Staged home fires

There have been instances where people have set fire to their own home in a bid to make a large claim on their insurance. Sometimes, homeowners will remove valuable and precious items from the home before starting the fire.

4. Commercial liability fraud

Employers liability insurance covers employee injury, disease and death as a result of employment. Some of these claims require extensive organisation and can involve fictitious accidents or the exaggeration of real ones.

5. Burglary, robbery and theft

There have been cases where both homeowners and renters have staged burglaries and robberies in order to claim for household items on their insurance. They may intentionally damage their property or ask a friend to break in, make a mess and ‘steal’ items. In some cases, residents exaggerate real crimes by claiming for items they never owned.

Both organizations are working to achieve same purpose of sanitizing the sector.