AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PREMIUMS AND CLAIMS PAID IN THE NIGERIAN INSURANCE INDUSTRY: A 2000-2017 ANALYSIS

Abstract

This study is an investigation into the relationship between premiums received and claims paid in the Nigerian insurance industry over the period 2000-2017. Data on gross premiums received and gross claims paid over the period were gotten from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) statistical bulletin, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) annual reports. Stationarity test carried out on the data reveal that data is stationary at the 1%, 5% and 10% levels of significance. The cointegration test reveals that no cointegration exists among the variables which imply that there is no long run equilibrium relationship between the variables. Using the ordinary least squares regression, the calculated probability value of 0.167 is higher than the 0.05 significant value, hence we accept the null hypothesis that there is no significant relationship between claims paid and premiums received in the Nigerian insurance industry. The coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.91157 indicates that gross premiums contribute 91.2 percent to variations in gross claims while the remaining 8.6 percent is owing to factors outside the regression model. We therefore conclude that claims paid by insurers is not a function of premiums received and recommend that insurers should endeavour to settle claims promptly and equitably to increase client satisfaction.