CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Insurance industry is a financial institution that exists to indemnify the insured in the case of any occurrence of the subject matter of insurance.
According to Ivory (1986) on general accident insurance represents a conglomeration falling under life, fire, motor, marine and aviation insurance. The classification is later made for simplicity and to ease description of the indenting insurance. And secondly, to show the dynamism in insurance business since many more insurance policies can be designed as soon as the needs are identified and ability acquired. For insurance, it should not sound strange if Nigerian insurance design and market insurance policies such as rainfall, licenses, hair dressers and waste removal contractors because accidents are likely to arise from them.
Insurance derives from the situation of unforeseen event at least in timing that is to say, the insured event must be accidental rather than willful. During the period of 1976 insurance decree, accident insurance was under life policy. But accident depends on the event. And it is a benefit policy. The general accident arises in claim settlement, which the course of events occur on the policy which the policy holder purchases and the reason is for security purpose for instance company to prove their worth of their buy by them getting insurance security at their point of needs should not be jeopardized by insurance companies through refusal to pay claim on the policy therefore didn’t justify to say that the acid test of a reputable of insurance is its ability to provide assistance to the policy holder when the occasion arises for no matter the scope and intensity of the advertising, an insurer that fails its insured at the point of need is unwillingly liquidating his own company, this payments efficient and fair settlement of a claim give satisfaction to the insured and it’s the best way of advertising for the company.
When an event insured against in an insurance contract happens and the insured informs the insurer, demanding that the insurer fulfill his promise the insured is said to be making a claim.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The challenges that led to this research are as stated below:
· Non prompt settlement of accident claims in Nigeria.
· Inadequate payment of claim by insurance companies in Nigeria.
· Delay in claim settlement in Nigerian insurance industry.
1.3 OBJECTIVE OF STUDY
The objectives of this research work are:
· To examine critically the issues influencing the non prompt settlement of general accident claims.
· To examine reasons for the non-adequate payment of claims by insurance companies
· To study the cause of delay in claims settlement in the insurance industry.
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION
In order to do a thorough work on this topic, the researcher formulated certain questionnaires as shown below:
· Is there non prompt settlement of accident claims in insurance services.
· Is there inadequate claims settlement in Nigeria insurance industry.
· Does non prompt settlement or accident claims affect the performance of insurance companies.
1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
Ho: There is non prompt settlement of accident claim in insurance services.
Hi: There is prompt settlement of accident claim in insurance services.
Ho: There is inadequate claim settlement in insurance industry.
Hi: There is adequate claim settlement in insurance industry.
Ho: Non prompt settlement of accident claim does not affect the performance of insurance companies.