The Ghana Shippers Authority has urged freight movers to insure their cargo locally in order to maximize benefits in the event of danger or harm to consignments.
Since industry players have always put cargo insurance on the overseas market at the expense of the local insurance market, the Ghanaian insurance market has not benefited much from the huge investments in imports and exports over the years.
At a meeting with importers and exporters, Mr Abdul Haki Bashiru-Dine, the Ghana Shippers Authority‘s Senior Freight & Logistics Officer, stated that Ghana could not continue on that path.
The engagement is the brainchild of industry players such as the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Shippers Authority, and the National Insurance Commission, who want to make the newly established Cargo Marine Insurance protocols as transparent as possible.
Mr Bashiru-Dine provided statistics on freight forwarding, stating that only four to five percent of the billions of cedis worth of goods imported had local insurance coverage.
Meanwhile, the Marine Insurance Act of 2006 requires companies to carry out local insurance as a matter of priority, a regulation that has been widely exploited by businesses.
The aim of the sensitization was to remind freight movers of the Act, as well as the benefits and penalties that come with it.
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Insuring locally, according to Mr Bashiru-Dine, aided in the fast handling of claims, the reduction of foreign exchange travel, better access to insurers, and adequate policy material, among other things.
Underwriting firms and brokers will be able to actively engage and play a leading role in the freight and shipping industry as a result of the protocols.
Mr Micheal Andoh, a Deputy Commissioner with the National Insurance Commission, said that while Cost Insurance on Freight had always been a local obligation, many companies treated it as an administrative expense, resulting in significant import duty savings.
“It’s past time for companies to use local insurers to save money,” he said.
Mr. Andoh warned freight forwarders to be wary of impostor online insurers who hide behind digitisation to defraud.
Ms Mercy Boampong, a member of the Marine Sub-Committee on Protocols, said the Commission had done a great job of cleaning up the insurance industry, which is why the initiative to educate stakeholders on the value of local insurance as a compliance measure was taken.
SOURCE:ATLFMONLINE
