ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Development of economic wealth of regions or countries to ensure well being of inhabitants is known as economic development. This can help in improving quality of life and economic well-being for a community. It can be done by creating and retaining jobs and by growth and support of incomes.

There is a difference between economic development and economic growth. Economic development is improvement in various indicators like life expectancy, literacy rates, and poverty rates. Whereas economic growth is increase or growth of a measure of gross domestic product, real national income, or per capita income. GDP is a national welfare measure which does not account for freedom, leisure time, social justice, or environmental quality. All these are critical aspects for ensuring high standard of living. Areas for economic development Economic development encompasses, government's role in ensuring sustainable growth, price stability, and high employment. Methods used by a government for this purpose include trade policies, tax policies, monetary policies, fiscal policies, and regulation of financial establishments. Economic development also includes infrastructure projects like construction of highways, affordable housing, K-12 education, parks, and crime prevention. Third category of economic development involves job creation and retention through marketing, small business development, business retention, real estate development. Economic developers or economic development professionals Economic developers are a part of a specialized and highly professional industry. They have dual role of leading policy-making efforts, and to ensure policy implementation through specific programs and projects. Economic growth Gross domestic product or GDP is used to understand strength of a country's economy. In terms of continents, North America experiences slow yet stable growth. South America experiences high economic growth followed by a recession, though of late it has moved towards stabilization. Africa comprises countries with low economic strength like Zimbabwe, and also countries with growing economies, such as Angola.

World Economy

The world economy grew 5.2% in 2007 powered by growth in China (11%), India (9%) and Russia (8%). The global economy faces a real risk of 1970s style stagflation however, with resource constraints tighter than ever before. Things could scarcely have looked rosier for the world economy at the start of 2007. The Emerging Markets, led by the giants of China, India, Russia and Brazil (the BRIC countries) had been posting 7%-10% grow rates for years. Property and stock market booms had brought consistent growth in North America and Europe. Investment was bringing economic development to much of the Middle East and Africa, and even Japan was recovering from its deflationary 'Lost Years'.Economic conditions within these countries play a major role in setting the economic atmosphere of less well-to-do nations and their economies. In many aspects, developing and less developed economies depend on the developed countries for their economic wellbeing.

Theories were even circulating that thanks to the growth of the developing world, we might enjoy years of unfettered growth, as new markets would go through successive growth spurts and counter the effects of slowing growth elsewhere. It was suggested that Asia was 'decoupling' from the US and able to grow under its own steam thanks to its two 'Awakening Giants'. What a difference a year makes.
The global economy has been hit by a rapid one-two punch that may be setting the stage for stagflation to make a come-back. It started with the sub-prime crisis in the US, caused by loans to risky or 'sub-prime' mortgagees who did not have strong credit histories. While house prices were rising there wasn't a problem. But as house prices slowed and then crashed to earth, default rates started to riseIt was not always clear what the contents CDOs consisted of, as they were combined, sliced and re-sold between financial institutions and funds, and which in some cases allowed risky debt such as sub-prime loans to be packaged as part of low-risk instruments. Vast swathes of CDO investments had to be written off, and banks became suspicious of investment, borrowing and lending, since it was not always clear what the underlying security was. Once banks stopped lending the Credit Crunch hit. We then witnessed extraordinary scenes of government regulators in US and UK having to help save collapsing banks in order to avert a meltdown of the financial system, and to Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) from the developing world taking large stakes in venerable western banks like Citibank and UBS in return for keeping them liquid.

PICTURES

HISTORY OF INSURANCE

In some sense we can say that insurance appears simultaneously with the appearance of human society. We know of two types of economies in human societies: money economies (with markets, money, financial instruments and so on) and non-money or natural economies (without money, markets, financial instruments and so on). The second type is a more ancient form than the first. In such an economy and community, we can see insurance in the form of people helping each other. For example, if a house burns down, the members of the community help build a new one. Should the same thing happen to one's neighbour, the other neighbours must help. Otherwise, neighbours will not receive help in the future. This type of insurance has survived to the present day in some countries where modern money economy with its financial instruments is not widespread.
Turning to insurance in the modern sense (i.e., insurance in a modern money economy, in which insurance is part of the financial sphere), early methods of transferring or distributing risk were practised by Chinese and Babylonian traders as long ago as the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC, respectively.[8] Chinese merchants travelling treacherous river rapids would redistribute their wares across many vessels to limit the loss due to any single vessel's capsizing. The Babylonians developed a system which was recorded in the famous Code of Hammurabi, c. 1750 BC, and practised by early Mediterranean sailing merchants. If a merchant received a loan to fund his shipment, he would pay the lender an additional sum in exchange for the lender's guarantee to cancel the loan should the shipment be stolen or lost at sea.
Achaemenian monarchs of Ancient Persia were the first to insure their people and made it official by registering the insuring process in governmental notary offices. The insurance tradition was performed each year in Norouz (beginning of the Iranian New Year); the heads of different ethnic groups as well as others willing to take part, presented gifts to the monarch. The most important gift was presented during a special ceremony. When a gift was worth more than 10,000 Derrik (Achaemenian gold coin) the issue was registered in a special office. This was advantageous to those who presented such special gifts. For others, the presents were fairly assessed by the confidants of the court. Then the assessment was registered in special offices.
The purpose of registering was that whenever the person who presented the gift registered by the court was in trouble, the monarch and the court would help him. Jahez, a historian and writer, writes in one of his books on ancient Iran: "[W]henever the owner of the present is in trouble or wants to construct a building, set up a feast, have his children married, etc. the one in charge of this in the court would check the registration. If the registered amount exceeded 10,000 Derrik, he or she would receive an amount of twice as muchA thousand years later, the inhabitants of Rhodes invented the concept of the 'general average'. Merchants whose goods were being shipped together would pay a proportionally divided premium which would be used to reimburse any merchant whose goods were jettisoned during storm or sinkage.
The Greeks and Romans introduced the origins of health and life insurance c. 600 AD when they organized guilds called "benevolent societies" which cared for the families and paid funeral expenses of members upon death. Guilds in the Middle Ages served a similar purpose. The Talmud deals with several aspects of insuring goods. Before insurance was established in the late 17th century, "friendly societies" existed in England, in which people donated amounts of money to a general sum that could be used for emergencies.
Separate insurance contracts (i.e., insurance policies not bundled with loans or other kinds of contracts) were invented in Genoa in the 14th century, as were insurance pools backed by pledges of landed estates. These new insurance contracts allowed insurance to be separated from investment, a separation of roles that first proved useful in marine insurance. Insurance became far more sophisticated in post-Renaissance Europe, and specialized varieties developed.
Some forms of insurance had developed in London by the early decades of the seventeenth century. For example, the will of the English colonist Robert Hayman mentions two "policies of insurance" taken out with the diocesan Chancellor of London, Arthur Duck. Of the value of £100 each, one relates to the safe arrival of Hayman's ship in Guyana and the other is in regard to "one hundred pounds assured by the said Doctor Arthur Ducke on my life". Hayman's will was signed and sealed on 17 November 1628 but not proved until 1633Toward the end of the seventeenth century, London's growing importance as a centre for trade increased demand for marine insurance. In the late 1680s, Edward Lloyd opened a coffee house that became a popular haunt of ship owners, merchants, and ships’ captains, and thereby a reliable source of the latest shipping news. It became the meeting place for parties wishing to insure cargoes and ships, and those willing to underwrite such ventures. Today, Lloyd's of London remains the leading market (note that it is not an insurance company) for marine and other specialist types of insurance, but it works rather differently than the more familiar kinds of insurance.
Insurance as we know it today can be traced to the Great Fire of London, which in 1666 devoured more than 13,000 houses. The devastating effects of the fire converted the development of insurance "from a matter of convenience into one of urgency, a change of opinion reflected in Sir Christopher Wren's inclusion of a site for 'the Insurance Office' in his new plan for London in 1667A number of attempted fire insurance schemes came to nothing, but in 1681 Nicholas Barbon, and eleven associates, established England's first fire insurance company, the 'Insurance Office for Houses', at the back of the Royal Exchange. Initially, 5,000 homes were insured by Barbon's Insurance Office
The first insurance company in the United States underwrote fire insurance and was formed in Charles Town (modern-day Charleston), South Carolina, in 1732. Benjamin Franklin helped to popularize and make standard the practice of insurance, particularly against fire in the form of perpetual insurance. In 1752, he founded the Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses from Loss by Fire. Franklin's company was the first to make contributions toward fire prevention. Not only did his company warn against certain fire hazards, it refused to insure certain buildings where the risk of fire was too great, such as all wooden houses. In the United States, regulation of the insurance industry is highly Balkanized, with primary responsibility assumed by individual state insurance departments. Whereas insurance markets have become centralized nationally and internationally, state insurance commissioners operate individually, though at times in concert through a national insurance commissioners' organization. In recent years, some have called for a dual state and federal regulatory system (commonly referred to as the Optional federal charter for insurance similar to that which oversees state banks and national banks.

UNDERWRITING AND INVESTING

The business model can be reduced to a simple equation: Profit = earned premium + investment income - incurred loss - underwriting expenses.
Insurers make money in two ways:
Through underwriting, the process by which insurers select the risks to insure and decide how much in premiums to charge for accepting those risks;
By investing the premiums they collect from insured parties.
The most complicated aspect of the insurance business is the underwriting of policies. Using a wide assortment of data, insurers predict the likelihood that a claim will be made against their policies and price products accordingly. To this end, insurers use actuarial science to quantify the risks they are willing to assume and the premium they will charge to assume them. Data is analyzed to fairly accurately project the rate of future claims based on a given risk. Actuarial science uses statistics and probability to analyze the risks associated with the range of perils covered, and these scientific principles are used to determine an insurer's overall exposure. Upon termination of a given policy, the amount of premium collected and the investment gains thereon minus the amount paid out in claims is the insurer's underwriting profit on that policy. Of course, from the insurer's perspective, some policies are "winners" (i.e., the insurer pays out less in claims and expenses than it receives in premiums and investment income) and some are "losers" (i.e., the insurer pays out more in claims and expenses than it receives in premiums and investment income); insurance companies essentially use actuarial science to attempt to underwrite enough "winning" policies to pay out on the "losers" while still maintaining profitability.
An insurer's underwriting performance is measured in its combined ratio. The loss ratio (incurred losses and loss-adjustment expenses divided by net earned premium) is added to the expense ratio (underwriting expenses divided by net premium written) to determine the company's combined ratio. The combined ratio is a reflection of the company's overall underwriting profitability. A combined ratio of less than 100 percent indicates underwriting profitability, while anything over 100 indicates an underwriting loss.
Insurance companies also earn investment profits on “float”. “Float” or available reserve is the amount of money, at hand at any given moment, that an insurer has collected in insurance premiums but has not been paid out in claims. Insurers start investing insurance premiums as soon as they are collected and continue to earn interest on them until claims are paid out. The Association of British Insurers (gathering 400 insurance companies and 94% of UK insurance services) has almost 20% of the investments in the London Stock Exchange
In the United States, the underwriting loss of property and casualty insurance companies was $142.3 billion in the five years ending 2003. But overall profit for the same period was $68.4 billion, as the result of float. Some insurance industry insiders, most notably Hank Greenberg, do not believe that it is forever possible to sustain a profit from float without an underwriting profit as well, but this opinion is not universally held. Naturally, the “float” method is difficult to carry out in an economically depressed period. Bear markets do cause insurers to shift away from investments and to toughen up their underwriting standards. So a poor economy generally means high insurance premiums. This tendency to swing between profitable and unprofitable periods over time is commonly known as the "underwriting" or insurance cycle.
Property and casualty insurers currently make the most money from their auto insurance line of business. Generally better statistics are available on auto losses and underwriting on this line of business has benefited greatly from advances in computing. Additionally, property losses in the United States, due to unpredictable natural catastrophes, have exacerbated this trend.

Principles of insurance

Commercially insurable risks typically common characteristics.
1. A large number of homogeneous exposure units. The vast majority of insurance policies are provided for individual members of very large classes. Automobile insurance, for example, covered about 175 million automobiles in the United States in 2004The existence of a large number of homogeneous exposure units allows insurers to benefit from the so-called “law of large numbers,” which in effect states that as the number of exposure units increases, proportionally the actual results are increasingly likely to become close to expected proportions. There are exceptions to this criterion. Lloyd's of London is famous for insuring the life or health of actors, actresses and sports figures. Satellite Launch insurance covers events that are infrequent. Large commercial property policies may insure exceptional properties for which there are no ‘homogeneous’ exposure units. Despite failing on this criterion, many exposures like these are generally considered to be insurable.
2. Definite Loss. The event that gives rise to the loss that is subject to the insured, at least in principle, take place at a known time, in a known place, and from a known cause. The classic example is death of an insured person on a life insurance policy. Fire, automobile accidents, and worker injuries may all easily meet this criterion. Other types of losses may only be definite in theory. Occupational disease, for instance, may involve prolonged exposure to injurious conditions where no specific time, place or cause is identifiable. Ideally, the time, place and cause of a loss should be clear enough that a reasonable person, with sufficient information, could objectively verify all three elements.
3. Accidental Loss. The event that constitutes the trigger of a claim should be fortuitous, or at least outside the control of the beneficiary of the insurance. The loss should be ‘pure,’ in the sense that it results from an event for which there is only the opportunity for cost. Events that contain speculative elements, such as ordinary business risks, are generally not considered insurable.
4. Large Loss. The size of the loss must be meaningful from the perspective of the insured. Insurance premiums need to cover both the expected cost of losses, plus the cost of issuing and administering the policy, adjusting losses, and supplying the capital needed to reasonably assure that the insurer will be able to pay claims. For small losses these latter costs may be several times the size of the expected cost of losses. There is little point in paying such costs unless the protection offered has real value to a buyer.
Affordable Premium. If the likelihood of an insured event is so high, or the cost of the event so large, that the resulting premium is large relative to the amount of protection offered, it is not likely that anyone will buy insurance, even if on offer. Further, as the accounting profession formally recognizes in financial accounting standards, the premium cannot be so large that there is not a reasonable chance of a significant loss to the insurer. If there is no such chance of loss, the transaction may have the form of insurance, but not the substance.
5. Calculable Loss. There are two elements that must be at least estimable, if not formally calculable: the probability of loss, and the attendant cost. Probability of loss is generally an empirical exercise, while cost has more to do with the ability of a reasonable person in possession of a copy of the insurance policy and a proof of loss associated with a claim presented under that policy to make a reasonably definite and objective evaluation of the amount of the loss recoverable as a result of the claim.
6. Limited risk of catastrophically large losses. The essential risk is often aggregation. If the same event can cause losses to numerous policyholders of the same insurer, the ability of that insurer to issue policies becomes constrained, not by factors surrounding the individual characteristics of a given policyholder, but by the factors surrounding the sum of all policyholders so exposed. Typically, insurers prefer to limit their exposure to a loss from a single event to some small portion of their capital base, on the order of 5 percent. Where the loss can be aggregated, or an individual policy could produce exceptionally large claims, the capital constraint will restrict an insurer's appetite for additional policyholders. The classic example is earthquake insurance, where the ability of an underwriter to issue a new policy depends on the number and size of the policies that it has already underwritten. Wind insurance in hurricane zones, particularly along coast lines, is another example of this phenomenon. In extreme cases, the aggregation can affect the entire industry, since the combined capital of insurers and reinsurers can be small compared to the needs of potential policyholders in areas exposed to aggregation risk. In commercial fire insurance it is possible to find single properties whose total exposed value is well in excess of any individual insurer’s capital constraint. Such properties are generally shared among several insurers, or are insured by a single insurer who syndicates the risk into the reinsurance market insurable risks typically share seven common characteristics.

WEALTH CREATION PLAN

Wealth Creation Plans give the customer the dual benefit of protection along with the potentially higher returns of market-linked instruments. The most important benefit the flexibility they give the customer in choosing the premium amount and also choosing the underlying fund in which this money is to be invested. Wealth creation plans also offer the customer more liquidity options as compared to traditional plans. As such, ideal for customers who want the protection of a life cover to be allied to the returns of market linked instrument – giving them an unmatched combination of benefits.Money saved is money earned. Whenever the value of your investment rises, you would like to ensure that the gains you have made are safeguarded. This policy offers you a unique strategy that allows you to protect gains made through your funds invested in the equity markets from any future equity market volatility. In addition, it also provides an insurance cover. So, realize your dreams without compromising your family’s protection.

There are a number of things you need to do regularly, to ensure that your life runs smoothly. Things like
your bill payments, your child’s school fees. Keeping a track of all these is difficult indeed.
And there are those things that ask for your attention only once but reward you with returns all your life. This is our first whole life a long term cover with just a single premium and allows you to stay invested throughout your life.

EDUCATION SOLUTIONS

One of your most important responsibilities as a parent is to ensure that your child gets the best possible education that can be provided.

education plans are designed to provide peace of mind to you, as a parent, that your child's education will be secure. These plans ensure that money is made available at the crucial junctures in a child's education - Class X, Class XII, graduation and post-graduation - to fund crucial commitments for the child's future.

Importantly, education insurance plans ensure that in the unfortunate event of the death of a parent, the child's education continues unhampered.

LIFE INSURANCE PLAN

Life insurance products assure your family will receive financial support, even in your absence. Put simply, when you buy insurance you provide your family with a sum of money, should something happen to you. It thus permanently protects your family from financial crises.

In addition to serving as a protective cover, when you buy insurance you create a flexible money-saving scheme, which empowers you to accumulate wealth to buy a new car, get your children educational solutions, and even retire comfortably.

Today, there is no shortage of investment options for a person to choose from. Given the plethora of choices, it becomes imperative to make the right choice when investing your hard-earned money, and online insurance is an ideal choice in today’s technology driven world. Buying Life insurance online is a way to make a unique investment that helps you to meet your dual needs - saving for life's important goals, and protecting your assets.

From an investor's point of view, an investment can play two roles - asset appreciation or asset protection. While most financial instruments have the underlying benefit of asset appreciation, buying life insurance online gets you the unique reassurance of asset protection, along with a strong element of asset appreciation.

When you buy life insurance online the core benefit is that the financial interests of one’s family remain protected from circumstances such as loss of income due to critical illness or death of the policyholder. Simultaneously, buying life insurance online gives a strong inbuilt wealth creation proposition. The customer therefore benefits on two counts and online insurance products occupy a unique space in the landscape of investment options available to a customer.

As your life stage and therefore your financial goals change, the instrument in which you invest should offer corresponding benefits pertinent to the new life stage. Online insurance products are the only investment option that offer specific products tailor-made for different life stages. You are thus ensured that the benefits offered to the customer reflect the needs of the customer at that particular life stage, and hence ensures that the financial goals of that life stage are met.

On the basis of which life stage you are in and the corresponding insurance needs, ICICI Prudential plans can be categorized into the following three types:
-Education Insurance Plans
-Wealth Creation Plans
-Premium Guarantee plans
-Protection Plans

Education Insurance Plans

One of your most important responsibilities as a parent is to ensure that your child gets the best possible education that can be provided.
education insurance plans that are designed to provide peace of mind to you, as a parent, that your child's education will be secure. These plans ensure that money is made available at the crucial junctures in a child's education - Class X, Class XII, graduation and post-graduation - to fund crucial commitments for the child's future.

Importantly, education insurance plans ensure that in the unfortunate event of the death of a parent, the child's education continues unhampered.

Under the education insurance plans platform, ICICI Prudential brings the following products to you. Please click on the product name to know more about the plans.

SEARCH THE WEB

Home Insurance

For many people, home is the largest asset; so home insurance provides protection for this investment. It is therefore important to have adequate home coverage as in case of any loses underinsurance can create many problems. Home insurance policy also provides coverage for furnishings, other structures on property such as swimming pool and garage. If you are living in a high-risk area home insurance does not cover natural disasters. Personal liability component is also a part of certain insurance policies. There are millions of companies providing coverage to homeowners. Always search online and ask for home insurance quotes from various companies. These quotes would help you in comparing rates of various companies and taking your decision. Go for that company that provides comprehensive coverage at lowest rates.
Therefore home insurance covers the following:
Home structure
Personal belongings
Your liability to others
If your house is damaged and you have to shift elsewhere till the completion of repairs the home insurance policy pays for the additional living expenses

Top Tips for Cheaper Home Insurance

Change the locks – If you’ve moved to a new home you never know who might still have a key. It is important to maintain locks. Five-lever mortise locks are recommended for external doors while windows should ideally have two bolt locks.
Install a good home security system - Sometimes there are alarm systems that might be preferred by an insurer. The NACOSS standard alarm can cut premiums with some companies by 7.5%.
Time-switch lights – Your home is more vulnerable to theft when you are not around. Time-switch lights will give the impression that you are at home.
If you are away – Remember to cancel newspaper and milk deliveries and ask someone you can trust to open and close the curtains and collect mail.
Keys – Don’t leave them in obvious places such as under a doormat. Also beware of ‘hook n crook’ thefts – where keys are left so close to a door that a burglar can simply hook them through a letterbox and open the door.
Install security lighting – illuminate your visitors for their safety as well as your own. Unwelcome visitors are less likely to loiter if they’re ‘in the spotlight’.
Join a neighbourhood watch campaign – this can help to reduce your premium if you inform the home insurance company of your participation in a scheme. It can reduce your premiums by up to 5%.
Avoid frozen and burst pipes – If you think pipes are frozen, turn off water at the valve and header tank to cut down the water that can escape.
Look out for subsidence – One of the most common problems to affect the home but usually covered in your building insurance policy. Look to see the excess level on subsidence and if your garden walls are covered.
Fire – Fit a smoke alarm and take simple steps to avoid accidents. Most fires in the home are caused by smoking or cooking; never smoke in bed, don’t leave cigarettes lying around and don’t leave cooking unattended. Other fire tips include closing doors at night to contain fires, check the home is safe before going to bed and keep matches away from children.
Don’t smoke – As covered above, the fire risk greatly increases if you smoke cigarettes. Most insurers will now ask if you are a smoker.
Increase your voluntary excess – The amount of excess is the money you are willing to pay on claims. So, for example, if you had a £50 excess and a £100 claim you would pay half and the insurer the other half. The higher the excess you are willing to pay, the lower your premium. This can be as much as 20% with some companies for as little as £250 excess.
Think about your cover – Do you really need accidental damage cover? This can increase premiums by 25%. Think carefully about the add-ons you need.
Don’t claim unless you need to – The fewer the claims, the higher your no claims discount. So for minor issues that would be inexpensive

Why is home insurance necessary?

oIt’s easy to think that bad things happen to other people and not ourselves, but the facts suggest that isn’t a risk we can afford to take. In the UK, one in three of us will get burgled at some point in our lives yet about a quarter of households are not protected by any form of home insurance. With other unfortunate occurrences such as flood/storm damage, fire and more, threatening our homes and their contents, by not having insurance we are leaving ourselves open to serious financial loss.
Home insurance can now offer something for everyone with insurance for homeowners, tenants and landlords. Increasingly, mortgage lenders will insist that you have buildings insurance to obtain a mortgage.
Insurers will need a lot of information including the construction date and materials for the building, and different insurers might not insure unusual properties such as prefabricated buildings and thatched cottages. Insurers also need to know about the local lie of the land to assess the flood-risk.

Home Insurance Guide

Home sweet home; there are few things more valuable in life than our own personal space or the home we make for our families. Our place to live is often the most valuable commodity in our lives and the contents within are frequently not just expensive, but of great personal value.
At moneysupermarket.com we recognise the need to protect your home, which is why our price comparison tool allows you to compare home insurance quotes from more than 60 different home insurance companies to get you the best home insurance price available. However, before you use the tool it is vital to know exactly what you are looking for and what you need from your policy. That is why we have compiled an exclusive guide to home insurance to point you in the right direction.

Outlook

Employment change. Wage and salary employment in the insurance industry is projected to grow about 7 percent between 2006 and 2016, compared to the 11 percent growth projected for wage and salary employment in all industries combined. While demand for insurance is expected to rise, job growth will be limited by corporate downsizing, productivity increases due to new technology, and increasing use of direct mail, telephone, and Internet sales. However, some job growth will result from the industry’s expansion into the broader financial services field, new types of insurance entering the market, and growth in demand for medical service and health insurance.
Medical service and health insurance is the fastest growing segment of the insurance industry. Significant growth is expected over the long term, even though increasing health insurance premiums have recently become difficult for some people to afford. As the members of the baby boom generation grow older and a growing share of the Nation’s population moves into the older age groups, more people are expected to buy health insurance and long-term-care insurance, as well as annuities and other types of pension products sold by insurance sales agents. If legislation is enacted that makes health insurance affordable to more people, even greater increases in demand for this type of insurance should result.
Population growth also will stimulate demand for auto insurance and homeowners insurance. Also, population growth will create additional demand for businesses to service the needs of more people, and these businesses will need insurance as well. In addition, growing numbers of individuals and businesses are purchasing liability policies to protect against possible large liability awards from lawsuits brought by people claiming injury or damage from a product.
Many successful insurance companies will recognize the Internet’s potential as a powerful marketing tool, increasing employment growth of some occupations while slowing growth of others. Growing use of the Internet might reduce costs for insurance companies, but it also could enable many clients to turn first to the Internet to get information on their policies, obtain price quotes on possible new policies, or submit claims. As insurance companies begin to offer more information and services on the Internet, employment in some occupations, such as insurance sales agents, could be adversely affected.
Productivity gains caused by the greater use of computer software will continue to limit the growth of certain jobs within the insurance industry. For example, the use of underwriting software that automatically analyzes and rates insurance applications will limit the employment growth of underwriters. Workers in claims now may not have to visit the site of customers’ damage; they may use satellite imagery to inspect the damage from their computers. In addition, the Internet allows insurance investigators to handle an increasing number of cases by drastically reducing the amount of time it takes them to perform background checks, limiting the additional investigators that must be hired to handle a growing workload. Also, computers have made communications easier among sales agents, adjusters, and insurance carriers—making all much more productive—by linking them directly to the databases of insurance carriers and other organizations. Furthermore, insurance carriers contain costs by increasing using customer service representatives to deal with the day-to-day processing of policies and claims.
Job prospects. Workers in property and casualty insurance, particularly in auto insurance, will be most affected by increasing reliance on the Internet. Auto policies are relatively straightforward and can be issued more easily without the involvement of a live agent. Also, auto premiums tend to cost more per year than do other types of policies, so people are more likely to shop around for the best price—and the Internet makes it easier to compare rates among companies.
Insurance companies will continue to face increased competition from banks and securities firms entering the insurance markets. As more of these firms begin to sell insurance policies, they will employ increasing numbers of insurance sales agents. In order to stay competitive, more insurance companies are expanding the range of financial products and services they offer, or are establishing partnerships with banks or brokerage firms.
Although employment in the insurance industry is expected to grow slowly, thousands of openings are expected to arise in this large industry to replace workers who leave the industry, retire, or stop working for other reasons. Despite the fact that the internet allows many people to buy policies online, many sales agents still will be needed to meet face-to-face with clients; some customers prefer to talk directly with an agent, especially regarding complicated policies. Opportunities will be best for sales agents who sell more than one type of insurance or financial service. Opportunities should be good for adjusters because they will still be needed to inspect damage and interview witnesses as the insurance industry, the Nation’s population, and the number of claims all grow. Opportunities likewise should be good for actuaries, even though the number of available jobs will small, because many people are discouraged from following this career path due to the stringent qualifying requirements of the examination system.

Occupations in the Industry

About 44 percent of insurance workers are in office and administrative support jobs such as those found in every industrMany office and administrative support positions in the insurance industry, however, require skills and knowledge unique to the industry. About 29 percent of insurance workers are in management or business and financial operations occupations. About 16 percent of wage and salary employees in the industry are sales workers, selling policies to individuals and businesses. Several others are employed in computer and mathematical science occupations.

y.Office and administrative support occupations. Office and administrative support occupations in this industry include secretaries, typists, word processors, bookkeepers, and other clerical workers. Secretaries and administrative assistants perform routine clerical and administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks handle all financial transactions and recordkeeping for an insurance company. They compute, classify, update, and record numerical data to keep financial records complete and accurate. Insurance claims and policy processing clerks process new policies, modifications to existing policies, and claims forms. They review applications for completeness, compile data on policy changes, and verify the accuracy of insurance company records. Customer service representatives have duties similar to insurance claims and policy processing clerks, except they work directly with customers by processing insurance policy applications, changes, and cancellations over the phone. They may also process claims and sell new policies to existing clients. These workers recently are taking on increased responsibilities in insurance offices, such as handling most of the continuing contact with clients. A growing number of customer service representatives work in call centers that are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, where they answer clients’ questions, update policy information, and provide potential clients with information regarding the types of policies the company issues.

Management, business, and financial operations occupations. Top executives direct the operations of an independent insurance agency, brokerage, or a large insurance carrier. Marketing managers direct carriers’ development of new types of policies that might appeal to the public and strategies for selling them to customers. Sales managers direct the activities of the sales workers in local sales offices of insurance carriers and independent agencies. They sell insurance products, work with clients, and supervise staff. Other managers who work in their companies' home offices are in charge of functions such as actuarial calculations, policy issuance, accounting, and investments.

Claims adjusters, appraisers, examiners, and investigators decide whether claims are covered by the customer’s policy, estimate and confirm payment, and, when necessary, investigate the circumstances surrounding a claim. Claims adjusters work for property and liability insurance carriers or for independent adjusting firms. They inspect property damage, estimate how much it will cost to repair, and determine the extent of the insurance company’s liability; in some cases, they may help the claimant receive assistance quickly in order to prevent further damage and begin repairs. Adjusters plan and schedule the work required to process claims, which may include interviewing the claimant and witnesses and consulting police and hospital records. In some property-casualty companies, claims adjusters are called claims examiners, but in other companies, a claims examiner’s primary job is to review claims to ensure that proper guidelines have been followed. Only occasionally—especially when disasters suddenly increase the volume of claims—do these examiners aid adjusters with complicated claims.

In the offices of life and health insurance carriers, claims examiners are the counterparts of the claims adjuster who works in a property and casualty insurance firm. Examiners in the health insurance carriers review health-related claims to see whether the costs are reasonable based on the diagnosis. Examiners check claim applications for completeness and accuracy, interview medical specialists, and consult policy files to verify information on a claim. Claims examiners in the life insurance carriers review causes of death and also may review new applications for life insurance to make sure that the applicants have no serious illnesses that would prevent them from qualifying for insurance.

Insurance investigators handle claims in which companies suspect fraudulent or criminal activity, such as suspicious fires, questionable workers’ disability claims, difficult-to-explain accidents, and dubious medical treatment. Investigators usually perform database searches on suspects to determine whether they have a history of attempted or successful insurance fraud. Then, the investigators may visit claimants and witnesses to obtain a recorded statement, take photographs, inspect facilities, and conduct surveillance on suspects. Investigators often consult with legal counsel and are sometimes called to testify as expert witnesses in court cases.

Auto damage appraisers usually are hired by insurance companies and independent adjusting firms to inspect the damage to a motor vehicle after an accident and to provide unbiased estimates of repair cost. Claims adjusters and auto damage appraisers can work for insurance companies, or they can be independent or public adjusters. Insurance companies hire independent adjusters to represent their interests while assisting the insured, whereas public adjusters are hired to represent the insured’s interests against insurance carriers.

Management analysts, often called loss control representatives in the insurance industry, assess various risks faced by insurance companies. These workers inspect the business operations of insurance applicants, analyze historical data regarding workplace injuries and automobile accidents, and assess the potential for natural hazards, dangerous business practices, and unsafe workplace conditions that may result in injuries or catastrophic physical and financial loss. They might then recommend, for example, that a factory add safety equipment, that a house be reinforced to withstand environmental catastrophes, or that incentives be implemented to encourage automobile owners to install air bags in their cars or take more effective measures to prevent theft. Because the changes they recommend can greatly reduce the probability of loss, loss control representatives are increasingly important to both insurance companies and the insured.

Underwriting is another important management and business and financial occupation in insurance. Underwriters evaluate insurance applications to determine the risk involved in issuing a policy. They decide whether to accept or reject an application, and they determine the appropriate premium for each policy.

Sales and related occupations. Insurance sales agents, also referred to as producers, may work as exclusive agents, or captive agents, selling for one company, or as independent agents selling for several companies. Through regular contact with clients, agents are able to update coverage, assist with claims, ensure customer satisfaction, and obtain referrals. Insurance sales agents may sell many types of insurance, including life, annuities, property-casualty, health, and disability insurance. Many insurance sales agents are involved in “cross-selling” or “total account development,” which means that, besides offering insurance, they have become licensed to sell mutual funds, annuities, and other securities. These agents usually find their own customers and ensure that the policies sold meet the specific needs of their policyholders.

Professional and related occupations. The insurance industry employs relatively few people in professional and related occupations, but they are essential to company operations. For example, insurance companies’ lawyers defend clients who are sued, especially when large claims may be involved. These lawyers also review regulations and policy contracts. Nurses and other medical professionals advise clients on wellness issues and on medical procedures covered by the company’s managed-care plan. Computer systems analysts, computer programmers, and computer support specialists are needed to analyze, design, develop, and program the systems that support the day-to-day operations of the insurance company.

Actuaries represent a relatively small proportion of employment in the insurance industry, but they are vital to the industry’s profitability. Actuaries study the probability of an insured loss and determine premium rates. They must set the rates so that there is a high probability that premiums paid by customers will cover claims, but not so high that their company loses business to competitors.

Nature of the Industry

Goods and services. The insurance industry provides protection against financial losses resulting from a variety of perils. By purchasing insurance policies, individuals and businesses can receive reimbursement for losses due to car accidents, theft of property, and fire and storm damage; medical expenses; and loss of income due to disability or death.

Industry organization. The insurance industry consists mainly of insurance carriers (or insurers) and insurance agencies and brokerages. In general, insurance carriers are large companies that provide insurance and assume the risks covered by the policy. Insurance agencies and brokerages sell insurance policies for the carriers. While some of these establishments are directly affiliated with a particular insurer and sell only that carrier’s policies, many are independent and are thus free to market the policies of a variety of insurance carriers. In addition to supporting these two primary components, the insurance industry includes establishments that provide other insurance-related services, such as claims adjustment or third-party administration of insurance and pension funds.

These other insurance industry establishments also include a number of independent organizations that provide a wide array of insurance-related services to carriers and their clients. One such service is the processing of claims forms for medical practitioners. Other services include loss prevention and risk management. Also, insurance companies sometimes hire independent claims adjusters to investigate accidents and claims for property damage and to assign a dollar estimate to the claim.

Insurance carriers assume the risk associated with annuities and insurance policies and assign premiums to be paid for the policies. In the policy, the carrier states the length and conditions of the agreement, exactly which losses it will provide compensation for, and how much will be awarded. The premium charged for the policy is based primarily on the amount to be awarded in case of loss, as well as the likelihood that the insurance carrier will actually have to pay. In order to be able to compensate policyholders for their losses, insurance companies invest the money they receive in premiums, building up a portfolio of financial assets and income-producing real estate which can then be used to pay off any future claims that may be brought. There are two basic types of insurance carriers: primary and reinsurance. Primary carriers are responsible for the initial underwriting of insurance policies and annuities, while reinsurance carriers assume all or part of the risk associated with the existing insurance policies originally underwritten by other insurance carriers.

Primary insurance carriers offer a variety of insurance policies. Life insurance provides financial protection to beneficiaries—usually spouses and dependent children—upon the death of the insured. Disability insurance supplies a preset income to an insured person who is unable to work due to injury or illness, and health insurance pays the expenses resulting from accidents and illness. An annuity (a contract or a group of contracts that furnishes a periodic income at regular intervals for a specified period) provides a steady income during retirement for the remainder of one’s life. Property-casualty insurance protects against loss or damage to property resulting from hazards such as fire, theft, and natural disasters. Liability insurance shields policyholders from financial responsibility for injuries to others or for damage to other people’s property. Most policies, such as automobile and homeowner’s insurance, combine both property-casualty and liability coverage. Companies that underwrite this kind of insurance are called property-casualty carriers.

Some insurance policies cover groups of people, ranging from a few to thousands of individuals. These policies usually are issued to employers for the benefit of their employees or to unions, professional associations, or other membership organizations for the benefit of their members. Among the most common policies of this nature are group life and health plans. Insurance carriers also underwrite a variety of specialized types of insurance, such as real-estate title insurance, employee surety and fidelity bonding, and medical malpractice insurance.

Other organizations in the industry are formed by groups of insurance companies, to perform functions that would result in a duplication of effort if each company carried them out individually. For example, service organizations are supported by insurance companies to provide loss statistics, which the companies use to set their rates.

Recent developments. Congressional legislation now allows insurance carriers and other financial institutions, such as banks and securities firms, to sell one another’s products. More insurance carriers now sell financial products such as securities, mutual funds, and various retirement plans. This approach is most common in life insurance companies that already sold annuities, but property and casualty companies also are increasingly selling a wider range of financial products. In order to expand into one another’s markets, insurance carriers, banks, and securities firms have engaged in numerous mergers, allowing the merging companies access to each other's client base and geographical markets.

Insurance carriers have discovered that the Internet can be a powerful tool for reaching potential and existing customers. Most carriers use the Internet simply to post company information, such as sales brochures and product information, financial statements, and a list of local agents. However, an increasing number of carriers are starting to expand their Web sites to enable customers to access online account and billing information, and some carriers even allow claims to be submitted online. Many carriers also provide insurance quotes online based on the information submitted by customers on their Internet sites. In fact, some carriers will allow customers to purchase policies through the Internet without ever speaking to a live agent.

In addition to individual carrier-sponsored Internet sites, several “lead-generating” sites have emerged. These sites allow potential customers to input information about their insurance policy needs. For a fee, the sites forward customer information to a number of insurance companies, which review the information and, if they decide to take on the policy, contact the customer with an offer. This practice gives consumers the freedom to accept the best rate.

Career Guide to Industries

Nature of the Industry
Working Conditions
Employment
Occupations In The Industry
Training and Advancement
Outlook
Earnings
Sources of Additional Information

How Your Driving Record Impacts Your Insurance Rate

In most states, the motor vehicles department has a "point" system, which is used to track your driving record. Generally, each type of infraction (moving violations, parking tickets, at-fault accidents, driving under the influence, etc.) is assigned a certain point value. When you are found guilty of one of these infractions, the appropriate number of points is added to your driving record. The more points you have, the worse your record.

Reviewing Your Record
Typically, an auto insurance company has the right to review the driving record of anyone who applies for an auto insurance policy from that company.

The purpose of this initial review is two-fold:

1.To determine whether you meet the insurer's standards of insurability (i.e., whether you will be issued a policy at all)
2.To evaluate your risk potential (i.e., how much your insurance will cost).
However, each insurance company has its own method of evaluating applicants, so the points on your driving record may or may not have a direct impact on the rates you pay for auto insurance.

Other Times Records Are Checked
Once you are issued a policy, your insurer probably has the right to review your driving record at any time (depending on your state). Of course, few insurers have the resources or the inclination to run daily checks on the driving records of every policyholder, so the frequency of these checks actually may be quite low. There are, however, certain times when you can be relatively sure an insurance company will be checking your record. These include:

•When you initially apply for coverage
•When you request a change to your policy (increased coverage amounts, etc.)
•When you add a vehicle to your policy, or change the covered vehicle
•When your policy comes up for renewal
If a review of your driving record uncovers negative information, there's a chance your insurance rates will increase. Insurers typically use their own "point" system to determine the amount of the increase (if any). Although these systems can vary, most insurers use a system based on the Safe Driver Insurance Plan, which is issued by the Insurance Services Office (ISO).

The Safe Driver Insurance Plan lists different types of auto accidents and moving violations, and assigns a "point" value (from 0 to 4) to each type based on the severity of the incident. Under the Plan, as you accumulate points, you are assessed surcharges that generally result in higher insurance rates. The number of points charged determines a premium increase.

10 Tips to Help You Save on Car Insurance

1. Drive less and earn a discount
If you drive less than 7,500 miles per year, you may qualify for a low-mileage discount on your auto insurance. And, some car insurance companies offer a commuter discount if you use public transportation during the week.

2. Don't use your car for business purposes
Some insurance companies will add a "business use surcharge" or increase your car insurance premium as your annual mileage increases. But, if you must use your car for business, be sure to tell your company or agent, so that your daily business travel is covered.

3. Increase your deductible
You might reduce your annual auto insurance premium by as much as 10 to 15% if you increase your deductible from $250 to $500. But, remember that you'll be required to pay the larger deductible upfront if you have an accident.

4. Keep an eye on your credit report
Your credit history is one of many "risk factors" that most auto insurance companies evaluate when setting rates (in states where it's permissible by law). Paying your bills on time and maintaining a solid credit history will help keep your auto and home insurance rates lower.

5. Drive safely
You may be eligible for a price break on your car insurance policy if you have no accidents or traffic violations for a specified period (usually three years – but a few companies will look back five years). Even a single speeding ticket can increase your auto insurance rates 5 to 10% depending on your state.

6. Buy a low-profile car
Cars are rated on a risk scale for auto insurance purposes. In general, sports cars and other high-performance, flashy vehicles are classified as higher risks because they are common targets for thieves and vandals, and because statistically, the people who own them tend to drive more recklessly.

7. Move
If you live in a rural community with little crime and traffic congestion, your insurance premium will generally be lower than if you live in an urban area where your car is more likely to be stolen, vandalized, or involved in an accident. We love city life – but sadly it costs more for car insurance.

8. Keep your car in a garage
Cars parked in garages are less likely to be stolen, vandalized, or struck by other vehicles. Using a garage to store your car may get you to a slight auto insurance premium reduction.

9. Install safety or anti-theft devices
Car insurance companies offer a variety of discounts for anti-lock brakes, automatic seat belts, and airbags. Similarly, anti-theft devices such as car alarms and tracking systems (e.g., LoJack®) may also get you an insurance discount because they reduce the chances of your car being stolen or vandalized.

10. Look for discounts
You may receive a discount from your auto insurance company if you buy more than one type of insurance through that same company (e.g., auto and homeowners). A discount may also apply to your auto insurance if you insure multiple cars under the same policy or with the same company. In addition, you can earn money-saving discounts for taking a defensive driving course, being a AAA member or staying with the same auto insurance company for a number of years. These discounts vary by company.

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Car Insurance Advice

It is a legal requirement to own car insurance but most of the time we never need to make a claim. Insurance companies are usually a little too quick to squeeze as much as possible out of us. From seemingly unnecessarily high excesses, to limited cover and never ending pages of small print they all try to find ways to make us pay more than we should for our car insurance.This makes choosing the right insurance of the utmost importance, even more so in the current economic climate when few of us have extra pennies to throw away on low-quality car insurance.So what's the solution? Price comparison websites continue to claim they make life easier and can beat your current insurance quote, however, increasing numbers of insurance companies are opting out of price comparison sites to cut costs. All this just adds to confusion ? where do you start?You should start by writing down exactly the type of cover you are looking for. A lot of people actually only require third party fire and theft, whereas others will need to fork out for the whole hog. Also, work out how much you can actually afford and ask friends and family for advice and recommendations.Don't completely disregard price comparison though as they do have their merits. For example, they are ideal for finding out about new insurance companies you may never have heard of before. However, do be warned, you shouldn't just be led by enticingly low prices. If it seems to good to be true it usually is.Once you have narrowed down your list to say three to five companies check whether it is cheaper to book online or by phone. Before you make a commitment, draw up lists of pros and cons for each policy.This does seem like a lot of hard work. But if in the end you save ?200 or so, just by more closely scrutinising policies and the full-packages that they offer, it is worth it.Finally, bear in mind the rate your current company offers you. You can often save money by switching but you may lose your no-claims bonus. Therefore, in the long run it may work out to be more valuable to stay put.

Car Insurance Tips

The law requires you buy car insurance. So if you must get cover, how can you reduce costs? Here’s seven easy ways to get the best possible car insurance deal. * Multiple quotes Get multiple quotes - use the internet and call a few brokers. It’s easy to gather some good comparison quotes. Remember to get different types of quotes e.g. one from a direct-sell insurance company; another from an offline broker who keeps a database of quotes; and a couple from the internet. Cheapest might not mean best. Will they pay out if you make a claim? How financially secure? How reputable? Check around with family and friends, and look for online reviews. * Different type of car Insurance costs vary depending on car type. Obviously, that £100k sports model costs more to insure than your average runabout. If you’re planning to buy a new car, check insurance costs before you buy. * Age and value of car Maybe you’re buying a used car? Maybe your car saw better days a few years ago, and now values much lower? So why pay for high-priced car insurance? In particular, do you still need fully comprehensive coverage? A good rule of thumb multiplies insurance premium by 10, and compares that figure with your car value. So if you’re quoted a £1000 premium and your car is worth less than £10,000 you may want to think if comprehensive represents good value. If you drop collision and/or comprehensive coverage, you should get big savings. * Higher deductibles (excess charges) Most car insurance companies use deductibles to keep policy cost down. Deductibles, or excess charges, show what you pay before your car insurance policy kicks in. Try requesting quotes with different levels of deductibles, and see how your quotes vary. Most internet quote forms contain a box where you can specify preferred level of deductibles. Ask your broker his recommended level. For example, going from £250 to £500 deductible can slash your insurance costs by 20% or more. Go to £1000 and you save a lot of money. But you must pay the deductible if you need to make a claim! * Multiple insurances This might come under the ‘Get Multiple Quotes’ heading, but it’s still worth mentioning separately. You usually get an insurance break if you buy multiple policies with the same insurer. This might mean multiple vehicles, or homeowner and car insurance. Either way it’s worth asking about multi-policy discounts. * Low mileage More and more people work at home. No more commuting. Fewer business trips. Low mileage on your car. Maybe you do travel to work, but car how about a pool? Either way, look for low mileage discounts. * Good Driving Record A good driving record always reduces your car insurance costs. Keep a clean drivers license. Don’t speed, don’t drive dangerously, and you’ll save money (apart from other benefits!) * Bonus tip Extra tips, include fitting an anti-theft device to your car, going on an advanced driver training course and using daytime running lights. If you’re a university student away from home, consider adding yourself to your parents’ policy.