Insurance in Sierra Leone

The Sierra Leone Insurance Commission, known as SLICOM, supervises and registers insurers, brokers and other market participants under the Insurance Act 2016. The market includes life and long-term insurance, motor insurance, fire and property cover, marine and aviation insurance, personal accident, medical and travel cover, public and employer liability, professional indemnity, fidelity, mortgage and all-risks products, as well as reinsurance. A 2023 financial-intelligence assessment recorded 12 licensed insurance companies, including seven composite insurers, and one reinsurance corporation; the current licence register should be checked with SLICOM before purchase or renewal. A private policy normally begins with a proposal and underwriting, which is the insurer's assessment of the risk. The insurer then issues a policy schedule and terms, the customer pays the premium and receives the relevant certificate or evidence of cover. The policy wording determines the insured risks, exclusions, limits, deductibles, duties and premium. Brokers and agents should document the transaction, insured person or property, cover and premium. An agent must remit the premium within five working days, while a broker must remit it within 30 days. Some cover is required by law. A motor vehicle used on a highway must have third-party insurance or another legally accepted security, and the driver must carry and produce the certificate when required. Tenantable or public premises such as colleges, hospitals, entertainment centres, offices, dwelling houses, factories and shops require fire insurance. An employer with more than five employees requires employer's liability cover. A building higher than two floors under construction requires public liability cover for death or injury to third parties and damage to neighbouring buildings caused by excavation or falling objects. Medical practitioners, dental surgeons, pharmacists, nurses and laboratory technicians generally require practice insurance, except when working in public institutions. Properties and liabilities located in Sierra Leone, including imports, must generally be insured with a locally registered insurer; the Commissioner may permit an exception for an import in writing. For a claim, notify the insurer directly in the manner and within the period stated in the policy. Depending on the risk, the insurer may require the policy, certificate, police report, medical evidence, proof of ownership, invoices or other evidence of the loss. Sierra Leone's Insurance Act does not establish one general processing or payment deadline for every claim, so the applicable policy terms and the insurer's communications matter. For a motor accident involving personal injury, notify the police. If a third-party claim is based on a covered judgment, the insurer's statutory liability can include the judgment, costs and interest when the proceedings were notified before or within 14 days after they began and no statutory exception applies. The injured third party must be a party to any settlement agreement. After a motor policy is cancelled, the certificate must be surrendered within seven days or replaced by the required statutory declaration; after an injury accident, a certificate may have to be supplied within five days. Life insurance has specific rules for missed premiums, changes and transfers. If premiums are paid quarterly or less frequently, cancellation for non-payment requires a grace period of at least 30 days; the minimum is seven days for monthly premiums and three days for weekly premiums. A policy may be revived according to its terms. A life policy assignment requires an endorsed policy or separate instrument, a witness and notice to the insurer. Changes to life-policy terms during the policy period require the policyholder's consent. Non-life cancellation and changes usually follow the individual policy terms because no general cooling-off or portability rule was verified. The National Social Security and Insurance Trust, known as NASSIT, operates Sierra Leone's statutory defined-benefit social insurance and pension scheme. Employers register through form SS2A and members through form SS1A, followed by NASSIT verification and a biometric card. Coverage includes permanent, temporary, seasonal, casual, probationary and provisional workers who are 55 or younger when registered, as well as domestic-service workers, sole proprietorships and partnerships, farmers, fisherfolk and informal workers. Self-employed workers can join voluntarily. Contributions are 15% of basic salary, divided into 10% from the employer and 5% from the employee; self-employed contributors pay 15% of declared income. NASSIT benefits include old-age, retirement, invalidity and survivors' pensions, grants and gratuities. A full pension generally requires age 60 and at least 180 months of contributions. A reduced pension can apply from age 55 to 59 with 180 months of contributions. The minimum pension is 30% of the best 60 months of earnings, increased by 2% for each additional 12 months of contributions, up to 80%. Invalidity benefits generally require permanent total invalidity established through a Medical Board, age below 60, at least 60 months of contributions and at least 12 months in the preceding 36 months. Survivors' benefits allocate 40% to a spouse and 60% to nominated dependent children, normally until age 18 or age 23 when in formal education. NASSIT states that pension payments are due by the 25th of each month. Family or community assistance and personal savings can reduce the effect of a loss, but they are not insurance policies. They do not provide SLICOM-regulated claims procedures or the same contractual and court-based rights. Private insurance is formally established but remains underdeveloped, with property, agriculture, microinsurance and takaful identified as growth or policy-development areas. Public reports have also identified transparency and regulatory-capacity concerns, so licence status, policy wording, exclusions, limits, notice deadlines and premium receipts should be verified with current SLICOM information before relying on cover.