Age and Insurance HELPING CUSTOMERS UNDERSTAND INSURERS USE OF AGE IN MOTOR AND TRAVEL INSURANCE

Transcription

1 Age and Insurance HELPING CUSTOMERS UNDERSTAND INSURERS USE OF AGE IN MOTOR AND TRAVEL INSURANCE JUNE 2014

2 INTRODUCTION The UK has one of the most highly developed insurance markets in the world. A large number of insurers offer a wide range of products that meet different customer needs. These products protect people and businesses against the risks of unforeseeable events associated with everyday life. The insurance industry is committed to treating people fairly and providing cover at a fair price and on reasonable terms. Insurers are opposed to unfair discrimination in society. As part of this commitment, the ABI signed up to a voluntary agreement with HM Government in 2010 to publish annual data for private motor and travel insurance from This aims to improve transparency, so that consumers can be confident that age is relevant to the assessment of risk and pricing of those products. A full list of data contributors can be found on page 8. METHODOLOGY Travel insurance The average cost of a claim per policy is calculated by dividing the total cost of claims notified in a year by the number of policies in force in the year. The average premium is calculated by dividing the total amount of premium by the number of policies in force in the year. The claims frequency is calculated by dividing the number of claims notified by the number of policies in force in the year, shown as a percentage. Motor insurance The average cost of a claim per policy is calculated by dividing the total cost of claims notified in a year by exposure 1 during the year. The average premium is calculated by dividing the total amount of premium income by the exposure during the year. The claims frequency is calculated by dividing the total number of claims notified in a year by the exposure during the year, shown as a percentage. 1 Exposure is the amount of risk on a motor policy that is exposed during the year and is measured in vehicle years. For example, if a policy covering 1 car came into force on 1 July 2012, this would be reported as an exposure of 0.5 vehicle years as the policy was only in force for ½ of the year. The remaining 6 months of the policy would be reported as 0.5 years during

3 IMPROVING TRANSPARENCY FOR CUSTOMERS Insurance pricing Insurance companies can use personal information to work out what cover they can offer and the premium they will charge to individual customers. Insurers decide what they will offer based on the customer s personal information, claims they have had in the past, actuarial modelling and any other information available to them. Insurers will ask a number of questions before providing an insurance quote. Different factors are used to predict the chance of a group of customers making a claim, and how much claims will cost each year. Only a proportion of policyholders will make a claim in any one year. Competitive markets drive insurers to ensure that the premiums they charge are appropriate to cover the risk posed, but no higher than necessary. They also encourage them to identify opportunities for new products, and specialise in niche markets, that meet the needs of different groups of people. How do insurers use age in pricing? For some types of insurance, including travel and motor insurance, a customer s age can provide a good indication of how likely they are to make a claim, and how much those claims will cost. Motor insurers will use a customer s age alongside a combination of other risk factors, including the type of vehicle, driving experience, address and occupation. For both younger and older drivers, age will be a significant indicator of the likelihood and severity of a claim. Travel insurers use relatively few rating factors in order to keep costs down and ensure cover is widely available. Average medical claims tend to increase gradually with age from 18 until early 60s, and more rapidly for older travellers. 3

4 AGE AND TRAVEL INSURANCE Why travel insurers use age when pricing cover Travel insurance is primarily designed to cover the cost of emergency medical treatment and repatriation should you become ill or injured abroad. It can also offer other types of protection, including cover for cancellation, lost luggage and delays. Relatively few rating factors are used in setting the price for travel insurance. This simple approach keeps prices low and allows a diverse range of distributors to operate in this market. The use of age in the assessment of risk is therefore very important to travel insurers. This is because the main component of travel insurance claims is medical-related claims, and these are closely correlated to age. Annual and single trip travel insurance Annual trip insurance provides cover for a potentially unlimited number of overseas holidays during the course of a year. Single trip insurance covers individual holidays, which enables insurers to provide a quote based on a person's risk at the time of travel, taking into account where they are going and how long for. Claims costs can vary significantly based on the destination, due to the cost of local medical facilities and transport links. Over a longer period there is an increased risk of changes in medical circumstances. Older travellers, and those with existing medical conditions, may therefore find that single trip policies provide better value, as they can be more accurately priced for the type of holiday. 4

5 Average cost of a claim per policy ( ) / Average premium ( ) AGE AND TRAVEL INSURANCE Impact of age on travel insurance claims and premiums Chart one shows the percentage of customers claiming per policy, the average cost of a claim per policy and the average premium for different age groups for private travel insurance in It shows the claims costs and premiums or people aged 18-20, and so in in five year bands until age 90. All policies for people aged 91 and over have been grouped together. Chart One Average cost of claims per policy, claims frequency and average premiums for travel insurance by age, % % 16% 14% 12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0% Claims frequency % Average claim per policy ( ) Average premium ( ) Claims frequency (%) ABI data for 2012 shows that: People aged were twice as likely to make a claim as those aged The average cost of a claim per policy for people aged between 71 and 75 was six times greater than for travellers aged The average cost of a claim per policy for travellers aged 91 and above was 191, while average premiums were 132 for that group. 5

6 AGE AND MOTOR INSURANCE Why motor insurers use age when pricing cover Motor insurance is a compulsory insurance. It pays compensation to anyone a driver might injure, or whose property they might damage in the event of a collision. It can also provide cover for the policyholder's vehicle in the event of accidental damage, fire and theft. There are a large number of different rating factors used in setting the price for motor insurance. These include factors associated with the vehicle, where it is kept and the people who drive it. Insurers claims experience shows that age can materially influence both the likelihood of policyholders making a claim and the cost of such claims when they occur. Insurers typically use an individual's exact age in years and months when assessing risk. The impact of age is especially important at both younger and older ages. In general, risk declines rapidly from 17 to 21 as younger drivers quickly become more experienced, and continues to decline through to the late 50s or early 60s before starting to increase again. Pay how you drive motor insurance Pay how you drive motor insurance policies, often known as telematics or black box insurance, take into account how the vehicle is used when setting the premium. This market is still developing and can enable insurers to offer premiums that are more tailored to the individual customer than is possible with a traditional motor insurance policy. Pay how you drive policies use GPS technology to measure how a vehicle is being driven insurers then use this information to make judgements about driving performance. This information is considered together with other traditional risk factors, such as a driver's age and occupation, to set premiums. Safe drivers will usually benefit from lower premiums than less safe drivers. This may help young, safe drivers reduce their premiums more quickly than with a traditional policy. 6

7 Average cost of a claim per policy ( ) / Average premium ( ) AGE AND MOTOR INSURANCE Impact of age on motor insurance claims and premiums Chart two shows the percentage of customers claiming per policy, the average cost of a claim per policy and the average premium for different age groups for private motor insurance in It shows the claims costs and premiums or people aged 18-20, and so in in five year bands until age 90. All policies for people aged 91 and over have been grouped together. Chart Two Average cost of claims per policy, claims frequency and average premiums for motor insurance by age, ,400 20% 1,200 1, % 16% 14% 12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0% Claims frequency (%) Average claim per policy ( ) Average premium ( ) Claims frequency (%) ABI data for 2012 shows that: The average cost of a claim per policy for drivers aged was twice as high as for those aged Customers aged were twice as likely to make a claim compared to year olds. Drivers aged were less likely to make a claim than those aged 56-60, but the average cost of a claim per policy was almost twice as high for the older group. 7

8 CONTRIBUTORS The companies listed below have contributed data to this publication. Company Motor Travel Acromas Insurance Company Limited (AICL) AGA International S.A. Ageas Insurance Limited AIG Europe Limited Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance Company of Europe Limited Allianz Insurance plc Astrenska Insurance Limited Aviva Insurance Limited AXA Insurance plc AXA Insurance UK plc Bupa Insurance Limited CIS General Insurance Limited Covea Insurance plc Direct Line Group Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc Enterprise Insurance Company Plc esure insurance Limited EUI Limited Evolution Insurance Company Ltd FirstAssist Group Ltd Groupama Insurance Company Limited Highway Insurance Company Limited Liverpool Victoria Insurance Company Limited Lloyd's Markerstudy Insurance Company Ltd Mulsanne Insurance Co Ltd National Farmers Union Mutual Insurance Society Ltd Octagon Insurance Company Limited Preserve Insurance Company Limited PTI Insurance Company Limited QBE Insurance (Europe) Limited Sabre Insurance Company Limited Service Insurance Company Limited Skyfire Insurance Company Limited Southern Rock Insurance Company Limited Tesco Underwriting Limited Tradewise Insurance Company Limited Trinity Lane Insurance Company Limited Zenith Insurance Plc Zurich Insurance plc (ZIP) 8