3-Year Jail term for Owners of Uninsured Buildings.

Is your house insured? If your answer is no, you could be jailed for three years. Are you living in an uninsured house? Yes? Your own punishment is less – just one year imprisonment.
Disclosing this yesterday, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) said the law had now stipulated a penalty of N250,000 or three-year imprisonment or both, on conviction, for anybody who fails to insure his or her building.
Likewise, an occupier of such building will be penalised to the tune of a minimum of N100,000 or one-year imprisonment or both.
Speaking at the flag-off of the implementation of the sections 64 and 65 of the Insurance Act 2003, in Abuja yesterday, Commissioner for Insurance (CFI), Mr. Fola Daniel, said the implementation became necessary because the incidence of collapsed building in the country has assumed “national concern and shame”, causing economic losses and leaving many families grieving for the loss of their loved ones.
Daniel cited section 64 which makes it mandatory for all persons “constructing any building that is more than two floors to insure their liability in respect of construction risks caused by their negligence or that of their servants, agents or consultants which may result in bodily injury or loss of life or damage to property of any workman on the site or of any member of the public”.
He added that Section 65 on the other hand makes it “mandatory for all owners of public buildings to insure against the hazards of collapse, fire, earthquake, storm and flood”.
He described public buildings as “all buildings owned or occupied by government ministries, extra ministerial departments, statutory bodies, tenement houses, hostels, lodger or licencee and any building to which members of the public have access for the purpose of obtaining educational or medical service or for the purpose of recreation or transaction of business.”
Daniel assured the public that the insurance policy shall cover the legal liabilities of an owner or occupier of premises in respect of loss of or damage to property or bodily injury or death suffered by any user of the premises and third parties.
Flagging off the implementation of the law, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Ambassador Bab-agana Kingibe, explained that the recognition of insurance as a mitigating instrument to address the financial losses prompted the promulgation of the law that makes it compulsory for all public buildings and those under construction to be insured.
Noting that specific reference was made in the law to buildings that are taller than two floors, he pointed out that, “when buildings collapse, the attendant huge financial loss could best be mitigated by the existence of an appropriate insurance cover”.
He therefore urged insurers to insist on the use of quality materials in the construction of buildings proposed for insurance, stating that, “their financial stake in the issuance of insurance covers should be sufficient incentive to do this as part of their risk assessment mechanism”.
In his remarks, Finance Minister, Dr. Shamsuddeen Usman, called on construction industry stakeholders to READ ALL