Understanding Insurance
Monday, June 23rd, 2008When we think of insurance, what comes to mind? You could be thinking of different types of insurance like health insurance, auto insurance or property insurance. Or you could just be thinking about insurance premium payments. What exactly are you paying for when you purchase insurance?
Behind the modern complexities of insurance lies the simple concept of risk. Risk is defined as the possibility of suffering from harm or loss. Every moment of our lives, we experience risk. Insurance is there to help us tackle some of the more important risks that we might face.
Insurance did not start out immediately with insurance companies popping up and suddenly offering insurance services. The idea of insurance is as old as human society itself. When ancient villagers come together and agree to help any member who has suffered misfortune, that’s insurance. From here we see that insurance means sharing the risk.
Another way of looking at insurance is that it is a transfer of risk. By having an insurance policy, you are in effect transferring some particular risk to an insurance company. When you operate a motor vehicle, there is always the risk of an accident. Accidents will cause damage to property. With an auto insurance policy, the insurer will be the one to pay the cost of these damages.
So how do insurance companies make money? Not everyone who has an insurance policy will make a claim from the insurance company. Insurance companies rely on principles of probability and statistics to estimate how many claims will be made. Using this data, they compute the insurance premium they have charge in order to be able to satisfy all possible claims as well as pay for administrative costs of providing the service. What’s left after that is their profit.
Another important concept of insurance is security. People purchase insurance because they want security. Insurance policies usually cover risks that are large or substantial from an individual’s point of view. As in the case of life insurance, accidental deaths will often result in financial disaster for an ordinary family. Governments create their own systems of insurance or make laws on insurance requirements to provide security to their citizens. Motor insurance is a legal requirement in all modern states. This is because operating a motor vehicle always has the risk of damage or injury to oneself and others on the road. And the costs of these road accidents tend to be substantial. Letting people run loose and taking risks they cannot afford to pay is not a good way to maintain public safety. Insurance is therefore mandatory.

