Rate Making
Process of calculating a premium so that it is adequate-sufficient to pay losses according to expected frequency and severity, thereby safeguarding against the insurance company becoming insolvent; reasonable-the insurance company should not be able to earn an excessive profit; and not unfairly discriminatory or inequitable. Theoretically, it can be said that each insurance applicant should pay a unique premium to reflect a different expectation of loss, but this would be impractical. Instead, classifications are established for applicants to be grouped according to similar expectation of loss. Statistical studies of a large number of nearly homogeneous exposures in each underwriting classification enable the projection of losses after adjustments for future inflation and statistical irregularities. The adjusted statistics are used to calculate the pure cost of protection, or pure premium, to which the insurance company adds on loads for agent commissions, premium taxes, administrative expenses, contingency reserves, other acquisition costs, and profit margin. The result is the gross premium to be charged to the insured.
Popular Insurance Terms
Several insurance companies under common ownership and, often, common management. ...
Underwriting method used in classifying applicants for life insurance according to certain demographic factors and assigning weights to these factors. Factors include physical condition, ...
Coverage for specialists in various professional fields. Since basic liability policies do not protect against situations arising out of business or professional pursuits, professional ...
Extremely aggressive behavior by an insurance agent to convince a prospect to purchase the insurance product without due regard for the prospect's ability to pay the premiums and/or needs ...
Act that makes the liability cost for cleanup joint and several. Even if a party is only partially responsible for losses inflicted, that party may be liable for the payment of the total ...
Language in the insurance policy that can be considered unclear or subject to different interpretations. Under these circumstances, the courts have generally ruled in favor of insured ...
Provision that funds a tax-qualified plan. Trust funds are the oldest, and still the most common, method of funding pensions. All contributions made by employer and employees are deposited ...
Accounts in which assets are allocated across the spectrum of equity, debt, and money market instruments. They are the most popular equity investment in variable annuities and variable life ...
Policy in which an insurer agrees to pay property or liability losses in excess of a specific amount per occurrence. For example, this type of coverage typically is used by an employer that ...
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