The Managing Director of Unique Insurance, Mr Victor Obeng-Adiyiah, who made the commitment at a ceremony to award the company's best-performing insurance agents during the 2016 financial year, said the company considers the agents as a vehicle through which the company's products get to customers, thereby playing a key role in the tremendous growth of the business.

The company's best performing agents drawn from the southern and northern sectors of the country numbering over 20 were rewarded for their hard work and for meeting their target for the year 2016.

Mr Alex H. Sackyefio, Kumasi, topped and was rewarded with a trip to Dubai, followed by Mrs Selina Adjei Gyan of Takoradi who will have a weekend treat at Aqua Safari, Ada, Ms Daphne Acquah, Accra, took the third position.

The rest received various items from the company in recognition of their performance.

The insurance company also honoured its best employees for 2016. Francis Kwamena Sey, Marketing Officer, Takoradi branch, was adjudged the best staff member, Mr Francis Antwi a Reinsurance Officer, Head office, came in second place and Hawawu Ikililu Awudu from the Tema Branch was third.

Mr Obeng-Adiyiah said it was important Unique Insurance Company Ltd appreciated the contributions of agents, hence the decision to reward them.

He said the company would continue to invest in training and equipping of agents to enhance their performance.

“We are going to come out with end-of-service benefits for them so that they also have some form of pension when they leave the service."

He urged them not to rest on their oars but to broaden their horizon in order to improve upon their performance.

Outlook

On the outlook for the company this year, the Managing Director said, "We are going to consolidate and grow our business through new business acquisition and increased business retention.

“From a dive in our premium over the last five years, we ended the year with a growth of 42 per cent and we hope to hit an additional 38 per cent by the end of this year 2017. He said the company would further enhance its customer service delivery and also repackage some of its products to meet the changing needs of customers.

The company, he said, had mapped out a strategy to increase its presence across the country by the end of the year, 2017.

Challenges

He cited lack of appreciation of insurance policies by Ghanaians, the economic situation, which made it difficult for people to increase or buy insurance policies during the year under review, and lack of legal enforcement on mandatory insurance policies as issues that confronted the industry, and which also affected the company.

Mr Obeng-Adiyiah also cited premium undercutting as one other challenge having a negative impact on the growth of the industry.

Premium undercutting is the practice where an insurance company secretly offers clients unrealistically low premiums in order to gain a competitive advantage. He said the practice was unethical and must be stopped to ensure sanity in the industry.

He said the motive of engagement was usually to increase the business portfolio, but that invariably depleted the insurer’s reserves.

Our product is the first ONLINE International Travel Insurance to be offered by an Insurer in Ghana. Being online, our international assistance collaborators have real-time access to the details of all policyholders irrespective of which authorized outlet they purchase their travel policy from. This eases and quickens the assistance process to enable travelers access benefits as soon as they need it. The product has 24/7 assistance support with hotlines in USA, Canada, UK, Germany, France, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Cyprus, Bahrain, and other international locations. UNIQUE TRAVEL POLICY provides benefits to travelers in case of any of the following; 1. Medical expenses arising from an illness / bodily injury 2. Hospitalization costs and Repatriation to Ghana after treatment 3. Repatriation of policyholder’s corpse or ashes to Ghana 4. Baggage loss/delay. 5. Delayed departure Abroad 6. Missed Flight connection Abroad 7. Travel Assistance services 8. Personal Liability, Legal fees & Bail bond, etc

Speaking at the launch of his company’s newest product – Unique Travel Policy – Tuesday in Accra, Mr Adiyiah stated: “This will reduce the incidence of distress calls and unbudgeted costs to Ghanaian travellers and their families, and also ensure the welfare and safety of Ghanaians when they are off the shores of the motherland.”

The launch of the product was a collaboration between Unique Insurance and Bahrain’s Trust Re, a leading player in the global travel insurance space.

Trust Re is the lead re-insurer of the Unique Travel Policy and has paid-up capital of $250 million.

Mr Adiyiah said: “We have met the needs of our clients by processing their valid claims fairly and paying promptly, we have given our shareholders good return on their investment, and our treasured employees have been adequately compensated for their contributions to making Unique Insurance what it is today.

“Competing merely on price has made all insurance companies worse off and has not inured to the benefit of policyholders – inadequate premiums affect the speed with which claims can be settled. It is time for insurers to get creative and we, at Unique Insurance, want to set the pace by offering a truly value-laden, responsive, first-of-its-kind travel insurance product in the market. Ghanaian policy holders deserve world-class products and services, and that is what Unique Insurance is prepared to offer.”

He also added that in October 2019, his outfit would mark the 20th Anniversary of Unique Insurance Company Limited.

“We have had our fair share of the triumphs and challenges. Overall we are excited that our company has realigned its operations to the original vision of the founders, and has been growing steadily over the last couple of years.”

Justice Yaw Ofori, Commissioner of Insurance, in a speech, expressed delight that the Unique Travel Policy is structured to keep 40 percent of the premiums and risk within the Ghanaian insurance market.

Congratulating the two companies for launching the product on the Ghanaian market, he noted: “It is such win-win arrangements that enable Ghanaian insurers to leverage on the superior capitalistation of international players such as Trust Re, while also keeping an adequate share of premiums in the Ghanaian market is the direction that we seek to steer the insurance industry towards.”

Cecilia Abena Dapaah, Minister for Aviation, who officially launched the product, wished the two companies a fruitful partnership.

The product can be bought at every travel agency at the time of buying travel tickets.