By Nemuel Ondima
Insurance brokers have welcomed the initiative by the government to regulate the insurance brokerage sector, but noted that such a law should not stifle the growth of the sector.
Association of Insurance Brokers of Kenya (AIBK) National Chairman who is also the President of the East African Insurance Brokers Association, Mr. Nelson Omollo said, as intermediaries, insurance brokers welcome and embrace the advent of the Insurance (Amendment) Act 2019, as a ‘legitimate disruption to our market’.
“We certainly appreciate and respect the component of Cash and Carry regime. Our discomfort with the new Act emanated from criminalization of premium handling. However, I am happy to report that discussions are under way between AIBK and the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) to try to use different avenue in resolving the matter as opposed to pursuing a purely legalistic or judicial procedures,” Mr. Omollo said.
In July, AIBK moved to court seeking to stop the implementation of the Insurance (Amendment) law, arguing that the amendments to the bill did not balance the rights of all industry players, frustrated government policy of growing insurance penetration and criminalizes handling of premiums by insurance brokers.
“Brokers have been at pains to justify the rationale of our decision to go to court when we were granted the Conservatory Order, for temporarily Stay of the new Act,” Mr. Omollo said.
Omollo was speaking at the 14th Association of Insurance Brokers of Kenya Annual Regional Conference taking place in Mombasa under the theme “the role & impact of regulation in driving growth’. The two-day conference which ends Friday November 8, has brings together insurance brokers from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
During the conference, the Association launched the 2020-2024 Strategic Plan, the document that will provide roadmap for AIBK’s board and management on a number of initiatives going forward for the next five years.
The Association of Insurance Brokers of Kenya (AIBK) is the umbrella Professional Association for all Insurance Brokers in Kenya. Its mandate is to influence and lobby different players in the insurance sector including the Government, Insurance Regulatory Authority, Association of Kenya Insurers, on creation of favourable operating laws, championing of consumer rights, development of insurance products as well as developing code of conduct for all insurance brokers.