The Effect of Digital Insurance Platforms on Customer Engagement in Nigeria

This study empirically examines the effect of digital insurance platforms on customer engagement outcomes among policyholders of insurtech-enabled insurance companies in Nigeria. The emergence of digital insurance platforms, including mobile applications, USSD-based policy management services, and AI-powered chatbots, has created new interactive touchpoints between insurers and customers beyond the traditional agent-mediated relationship. Customer engagement, encompassing frequency of platform interaction, self-service utilization, voluntary information sharing, and referral behavior, is an important predictor of policyholder retention and lifetime value in digital insurance contexts. This research employs a survey design with 350 active users of digital insurance platforms operated by selected insurtech companies in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. Structural equation modeling (SEM) assesses the relationships between platform usability, perceived value, trust, and customer engagement dimensions. The study also tests whether digital engagement mediates the relationship between platform quality and customer retention. Preliminary findings are expected to confirm that platform usability and perceived value are the strongest drivers of digital engagement, and that engagement significantly mediates the retention relationship. The research contributes to the emerging insurtech literature in the African context and provides practical guidance for platform investment prioritization. Keywords: Digital Insurance, Customer Engagement, Insurtech, Nigeria, Structural Equation Modeling.