Social and economic value of insurance

While insurance products will be familiar to most, the beneficial effects of insurance on well-being are often only poorly understood. It is therefore important to understand what insurance is and what it is not. Our primer on the social and economic value of insurance describes the traditional role of insurance and insurance companies, what benefits insurance has for society and the economy, and how governments and insurers can work together to preserve or even enhance those benefits.

The primer briefly summarizes the history of insurance and the principles underlying the core business model. It goes on to describe some of the lesser-known functions of insurance, such as its contributions to economic development and well-being, its contribution to entrepreneurship and investment, as well as implications for insurance regulation.