Air Crash: NCAA Tinkers New Compensation Plan
- By Pearl Ngwama
- Published Monday 4th 2013
- News
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A family of aviation crash victim may be paid as much as $300,000 instead of the current $100,000 if the plan by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to introduce a new funding and insurance programme kicks off soon. But insurance companies and aviation experts are kicking against the new move on the grounds that it will be too tasking for air travellers who are already reeling over an exorbitant air bill. They also argue that the aviation authority is intruding into the roles of the insurance industry.
To be known as No-Fault Insurance Scheme, it will be fully administered by the NCAA while the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is to be the major underwriter. The policy allows prospective travellers to accumulate or buy more insurance from the agency at any point he is about to board an airline. This is an additional insurance to the normal insurance cover each traveller has.
Speaking to BusinessWorld over the weekend, Mr. Sunday Thomas, director general, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), said the major business of NCAA should be about infrastructure development to ensure that aircraft flying the Nigerian airspace are in good condition, thus, safeguarding the lives of travellers.
Thomas said such insurance package should be left for aviation insurers to decide whether to introduce such a product or not. According to him, NCAA, as a government agency, might find it difficult to manage such a scheme, especially, when it does not fall under its jurisprudence. “I think it might fail like most previous government projects,” he said. “Infrastructural development should be the business of NCAA. They should ensure that aircraft are in good condition and not about managing fund. As it is, every traveller has an insurance cover and now, they are talking of additional cover. So, I don't know anywhere in the world where something of such is in operation.”
Thomas, however, said the association is already discussing with the appropriate quarters on the new development, adding that airline operators are unhappy about it. "We are already discussing it with appropriate quarters to resolve all issues around it," he said.
In the same vein, Mr. Ekanem Ekanem, chairman, Air Transport Senior Staff Services Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), said because Nigeria is a developing economy, air travellers may see it as an additional cost that they may not want to bear.
Ekanem said only few people patronise air travel currently, and that a development like this might further lead to exit of more air travellers from the aviation industry.
“I quite agree that the new scheme will improve payment of compensation to victims' families, but the fact remains that how much will it then cost an average Nigerian to travel by air?” he asked.
He added that “it will compound the cost and thereby making air travel not a viable option. Introducing this scheme therefore will reduce the number of people travelling by air.”
On the other hand, Captain David Olubadewo, managing director, Airline Management Support Limited (AMS) said NCAA should not bother itself with insurance but concentrate on regulatory matters. “I believe that such matters should be left for insurance companies of the airlines to decide,” he said.
Meanwhile, it was gathered that when this new insurance kicks-off, it can be bought at a cheap price, at the point of travelling by interested travellers.
Dr. Harold Demuren, director general of NCAA, said the motive was to reduce the hardship encountered by families of air crash victims and enable them earn more than the statutory $100,000 compensation. Demure said the planned scheme was already on in Europe and the United States, describing it as the best way to go.
He disclosed that the accruable funds would be managed separately by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), explaining that though money would not buy back lives, he believes that the $100,000 compensation was very meagre.
With the new scheme, there are indications that in the event of an accident, victim's family could be paid as much as $300, 000, depending on the consistency of the deceased in raking up more premiums.
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8 Responses to "Air Crash: NCAA Tinkers New Compensation Plan" 
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said this on 10 Mar 2013 2:52:19 PM UTC
Nothing can compensate for the loss of life, it will push the airlines to put safety first and formost
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said this on 12 Apr 2013 5:22:12 AM UTC
Hi! You sound like music to a moms broken heart. I have a saothnt was recruited to. DII football school. Then the recruiting coach left and before he started the head coach left and went to a D1 school. My son practiced here and there and redshifted himself once he saw that he was pretty much lost in the process Nd Bo real relationship with the remaining Coaches. He finished out the year and asked for a release to talk to a D1. He was accepted by school and told to tryout for walk on as it was late in the game (April of 2012) so he was academically admitted to D1 school on our dime and tried out and made the team just to be told a few hours later that hewasn't qualified due to a big 12 rule of needing 3 semesters under his previous school and would never qualify to play there. Don't quite know what to do now. He is considered a Freshman . Should he juco? Transfer back to his D2 or a D2 after this year of non participation and we pay for this year? Should he make connections with other conference D1 schools aiaa? since he obviously was good enough to qualify and make the team at the current D1 In the big 12 that he is not qualified now at and didn't sign a NLI long story would love to setup a call with my bummed son At least time is in his corner?
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said this on 14 Apr 2013 5:56:16 AM UTC
Hi Malcolm, NCAA Div. I athletes have what is commonly called a “five-year clock.” In Division I, you would have 5 years from when you first enroll in any college as a full-time student to use your four seasons of eligibility. NCAA Div. II and NAIA schools use a “10-semester clock.” For those schools, you would have 10 semesters of full-time enrollment from the first time you enroll as a full-time student to use your four seasons of eligibility. The key difference is that Div. II and NAIA do not count semesters in which you are only enrolled as a part-time student. For NCAA Div. I, once your “five-year clock” starts, the only action you could take to pause or stop the “clock” would be to enter the military or to go on an official church mission.I’m going to follow up with a private e-mail to you. Rick
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said this on 20 Apr 2013 5:43:26 AM UTC
In no other business do you expect to go and see someone with a degree and get them to do 2 days work for you and not pay, so why do people expect a Travel Agent to do so? For example you can write your will online, but a lot of people still pay 30-50 pound to have someone do it for them.As already commented this is about detailed Itineraries not your bulk standard holiday, so if you came in after a quote for Sri Lanka 3 centre that takes the agent about 3-4 hours to put together you will not be charged. If how-ever you came in for a 12 centre Africa quote that can take up to 20 hours to place together (e-mails out, faxes and other such costs) you would be. What is the agent in the article talking about charging 30-50 quid, not a lot really if you wish to do this? Plus from an agents point of view they can work on maybe 1-3 of these at a time. 10 years ago about 40% conversation rate, 5 years ago about 30% now it is heading under 20% as people take the quotes and go direct asking for some money off here and some off there, to watch it go wrong more often than is admitted. The thing is those pounds that people go save is the agentâs costs and the protection against things going wrong.Also people shop around more, we placed togeather a simple quote with 3 company’s and when we rang the last company they told us they already had the quote and will add us to it so we could see on our system, nothing strange there, but when we asked how many other agents this person had been to and the answer was 32. So they had rung 32 agents regarding 1 quote, 32 agents each spending 3 hours doing the quote, that is 96 hours or over 2 weeks, instead of saying this is best price I have they just kept ringing agent after agent and saying they did not already have any quotes.I did have to ask the customer why and they informed me that the 2nd agent had given the best price and others would match but not beat it, but that quote was still 500 pounds over what they could afford. The agent margin on this quote was under 500 pounds, so they where never going to get it at the price they wanted.So why such a low fee for something thatâs costs so much, well it a discourager and once you have your quote it does not stop you shopping around, most agents would give off 50 pounds if it saves them 12 hours work. We have done this and seen it done. Agents do charge now, if they know there stuff. The first agents who did this saw an increase in business as they where able to devote more time to serious enquiries and not waste there time on to be honest in some cases dreams. If you can get rid of 50% of none bookings and if you look a figures quoted thatâs about 2 in 5 quotes you free up a lot of time to give a better service.
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said this on 26 Apr 2013 6:37:54 AM UTC
I agree totally with Johnathan Hansen and Deborah. This is not about agents, it’s about the general public learning how to use agents. Travel agents have changed (those that haven’t have either gone or are going) – the general public does not seem to realise this. Often, simple stuff people should do online – if someone asks me for a low cost airline flight I ask them why on earth are they calling me (though I still do some of these as some of my clients just do not have the time or inclination to do it themselves) – go and book it online. I cannot “add value” to the booking. Simple bucket and spade holidays are DIY as well. What I will say, is that part of the knack (for an agent) is knowing time wasters and what many talk about as being “poor service” often translates as people getting ignored because our agent’s sixth sense tells us that what you are going to ask for, is hours of work and then take great pride in telling us that you have found the same thing for £10 cheaper on ripyouoffholidays -dot- com.If you read carefully what J Hansen says, this epitomises what the modern agent should be – someone committed to their client as much as the client is committed to the agent. each knows what the other wants and expects. A good agent is someone to whom a time poor person (and that’s not always a rich one!) can simply say “Get me a holiday for next week” in the full knowledge that what will be arranged will be what they want – or that if say two options are offered, both will be relevant.Fine, if you enjoy doing your own thing, that’s good as well. Agents are not demanding that you book with them. As long as people recognise that agents are not a sort of travel “RAC” service or a booking resource to be viewed as just another (though human) internet resource page. It is pleasing to see that many find planning a trip or adventure just as exciting as enjoying the travel experience. That’s exactly as it should be – as it has always been. Please remember, though, that just because information appears online, does not mean that it is correct or even relevant. Good, modern agents are very, very hard to find these days and their numbers are diminishing rapidly so if you need one and can find one, nurture them. If you are happy doing things yourself, that’s good as well. Agents are fully aware that the General Public do not owe them a living and most have grasped that, adapted and moved on. The issue seems to be that the average holidaymaker does not seem to have advanced quite as quickly!
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said this on 26 Apr 2013 6:37:54 AM UTC
I agree totally with Johnathan Hansen and Deborah. This is not about agents, it’s about the general public learning how to use agents. Travel agents have changed (those that haven’t have either gone or are going) – the general public does not seem to realise this. Often, simple stuff people should do online – if someone asks me for a low cost airline flight I ask them why on earth are they calling me (though I still do some of these as some of my clients just do not have the time or inclination to do it themselves) – go and book it online. I cannot “add value” to the booking. Simple bucket and spade holidays are DIY as well. What I will say, is that part of the knack (for an agent) is knowing time wasters and what many talk about as being “poor service” often translates as people getting ignored because our agent’s sixth sense tells us that what you are going to ask for, is hours of work and then take great pride in telling us that you have found the same thing for £10 cheaper on ripyouoffholidays -dot- com.If you read carefully what J Hansen says, this epitomises what the modern agent should be – someone committed to their client as much as the client is committed to the agent. each knows what the other wants and expects. A good agent is someone to whom a time poor person (and that’s not always a rich one!) can simply say “Get me a holiday for next week” in the full knowledge that what will be arranged will be what they want – or that if say two options are offered, both will be relevant.Fine, if you enjoy doing your own thing, that’s good as well. Agents are not demanding that you book with them. As long as people recognise that agents are not a sort of travel “RAC” service or a booking resource to be viewed as just another (though human) internet resource page. It is pleasing to see that many find planning a trip or adventure just as exciting as enjoying the travel experience. That’s exactly as it should be – as it has always been. Please remember, though, that just because information appears online, does not mean that it is correct or even relevant. Good, modern agents are very, very hard to find these days and their numbers are diminishing rapidly so if you need one and can find one, nurture them. If you are happy doing things yourself, that’s good as well. Agents are fully aware that the General Public do not owe them a living and most have grasped that, adapted and moved on. The issue seems to be that the average holidaymaker does not seem to have advanced quite as quickly!
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said this on 09 May 2013 11:06:12 AM UTC
If you park your car on your parent’s property, and never drive it anywhere, you might not need to have any insurance.But if you are going to take that car out on the public highways, you need all sorts of different types of insurance to pay for medical expenses if anyone hurt in an accident, pay for repairs if any damage from accident, get another car if it is stolen, protect your assets (house, car bank accounts) from beign drained by law suits, and also keep you out of jail.While you are living under your parent’s roof, they can add you to their insurance policy … this will be expensive, but not as expensive as a policy in your own name.Once you go to college, and live wherever the college is, no longer under your parent’s roof, then you do need to have policy in your own name.
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said this on 12 May 2013 9:28:26 AM UTC
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