PROPERTY INSURANCE: TO DO OR NOT TO DO

INTRODUCTION

Three years ago, Ryan- a commercial property owner converted his chalet to a small retail store in Abuja. A week after the artisans had cleaned out, a negligent security guard burned it to the ground after he left a pot of water boiling unattended in the unoccupied store.

The security guard absconded and the company refused to be held liable for the damage.

One week later, Ryan received a cheque of N1.5million to rebuild his store. He completed it with N1.2million, within a space of three weeks.

The source of Ryan’s N1.5million cheque? Insurance. Two weeks before the incident, Ryan’s in-law had convinced him to insure his property- a decision he agreed to just to get him off his back.

Following the incident, Ryan totally agrees that was one of the smartest decisions he ever made and at this moment, all his properties- residential and commercial are insured.

Life has its uncertainties. Imagine working hard to build a solid financial footing for you and your family and one of life’s mishaps occurs? Without any measures in place, you could end up in ruin. Having insurance could reduce the impact of those mishaps.

You can insure just about anything including health, property, equipment and even life itself. For the sake of this article, we will focus on property insurance.

WHAT IS PROPERTY INSURANCE?

Property insurance provides protection against most risks to the property such as fire, theft and some weather damage. This includes specialized forms of insurance such as fire insurance, flood insurance, earthquake insurance or home insurance.

BENEFITS OF PROPERTY INSURANCE.

Property insurance is important because both human life and the business environment are characterized by risk and uncertainty. Insurance plays a key role in the mitigation of risks.

It is beneficial in the following ways:

• Provides security to the property owner.
• Covers accidents that occur to the property.
• The security it provides reduces stress and anxiety.
• Lower deductible compared to the cost of repair.
• Replaces items lost or damaged from many causes.

CONS

• Some persons consider it an unnecessary cost.

TYPES OF PROPERTY INSURANCE 

Fire Insurance: A property coverage that pays for damages to property and other losses you may suffer from a fire. It can pay for the cost of repairing or replacing damaged property.

Special Perils: An insurance coverage that safeguards the property against unforeseen contingency caused by lightning, explosion/implosion, destruction or damage caused by aerial devices, man-made perils in the form of riots or strikes or natural calamities like storm or flood.

In some cases, special perils can be treated as extensions of fire insurance.

 WHAT WE RECOMMEND?

If you own a property, insurance is necessary. Be inspired by Ryan’s story and save yourself the heartache of any unforeseen circumstances rendering you homeless, out of business or causing you unnecessary anxiety.

There are a number of reputable property insurance companies in Nigeria we can recommend to provide premium coverage for your property.

Simply get in touch with us at enquiries@rydalmewsltd.com

Or Call: 09043817013; 08178348754