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What is Insurance Premium?
To define premiums in insurance, it is imperative to know what insurance is. Insurance is a contract signed between an individual and an insurance company to protect life or property in case of an unfortunate event.
To safeguard this contract, the insurer charges an insurance premium. Investors must understand that this premium is proportionate to the risk involved. Typically, the premium is paid periodically for an agreed term. The insurer pays the sums agreed to on the occurrence of the contingency for which the insurance was taken.
How is the Insurance Premium calculated?
Let us consider life insurance as an example. Assume that the life expectancy in India is 70 years. The insurer will consider this when calculating the insurance premium. Then, the insurer will make suitable adjustments depending on the person’s age. If the age at entry is higher, then the insurance premium would be higher. The insurer will make further adjustments if the health condition of the person is known.
Now you can see how various factors creep into the calculation of premium. There are numerous other factors that are considered before setting the premium on an insurance policy. The effect of the variables on the life of a person cannot be calculated manually. Therefore, tables are created using special algorithms to calculate the premium on insurance policy.
From the above, you can see that various factors enter the picture, and the premium is decided based on these factors.
Fundamentally, the insurer is looking at the risk to the life of each person, and based on that risk, premiums are offered.
What Are the Key Factors Affecting Insurance Premiums?
key factors that affect insurance premiums are
- age
- gender
- healthiness (BMI)
- medical history
- past illnesses
- major surgeries
- lifestyle habits
- vices
- family size
- education
- occupation
- one’s ability to pay premiums
Typically, insurers offer a basic premium and build on it to cover other negatives.
What Do Insurers Do With the Premiums?
Premiums are the real source of income for the insurer. Insurers aim to invest premiums in a way that earns a higher return than the total amount they need to pay for claims and benefits. This allows them to make a profit. If their investments do not perform well enough, they may incur a loss. With modern financial systems and markets, there are a variety of options for insurer to grow their money wisely to earn handsome returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can The Premium Change During The Tenure?
Technically, the premium cannot change. However, if the contract allows certain milestones at which you can avail of additional benefits, it is possible to change premiums.
However, since GST is applicable on the premiums based on the types of policies, the GST rate could change, affecting the premium you pay inclusive of GST.
What Happens If I Cannot Pay The Insurance Premium on Time?
Typically, insurers allow a grace period of 30 days from the due date. One can still pay the premium with an interest charge plus a late payment fee after the grace period. The fee could vary depending on the insurer and the type of policy.
The insurer usually gives you sufficient alerts to remind you of the due date.
What Happens If I Stop Paying Insurance Premiums?
The insurer would have made clear what the terms and conditions of the policy are at the time of issuing the policy. With the insurance regulator IRDA in the picture, the insurer will follow its guidelines.
For instance, if a policy has been paid for five consecutive years and then you stop paying the premiums, you will get a reduced sum at maturity or when a claim is made. However, your life will not be covered when you stop paying the premiums. Such policies are termed partly paid-up policies.
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