The History of Insurance.

Insurance is a contract, represented by a policy, in which an individual or entity receives financial protection or reimbursement against losses from an insurance company. The company pools clients' risks to make payments more affordable for the insured. Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent or uncertain loss. An insurer, or insurance carrier, is a company selling the insurance; the insured, or policyholder, is the person or entity buying the insurance policy. The amount of money to be charged for a certain amount of insurance coverage is called the premium. Risk management, the practice of assessing and controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice. The history of insurance can be traced to the early days of human civilization. In early societies, people often pooled their resources to help members of the community in times of hardship. The concept of insurance was born out of this need to protect one's self and family from financial ruin due to unforeseen events such as death, fire, flood or theft. The first recorded insurance policy was written in Genoa in 1347, and covered the risks of shipowners in case of loss at sea. This type of insurance soon spread to other types of businesses, such as those engaged in the business of transporting goods by land or air. In the 17th century, London became the world's center for marine insurance, and Lloyd's of London was founded in 1686 to provide insurance for ships and their cargoes. Today, Lloyd's is a leading insurance market for a wide range of risks, including maritime risks, energy risks, terrorism risks and others. The 18th century also saw the development of life insurance in England. The first life insurance policy was issued in 1706 by the Amicable Society for a Perpetual Assurance Office, founded by Thomas Rowe in London. This society collected regular premiums from its members and used the money to pay off the estates of deceased members. The 19th century saw the rise of many large insurance companies in the United States, such as Aetna (1819), New York Life (1843) and Metropolitan Life (1870). These companies were able to offer a wide range of insurance products, including life, health, accident and fire insurance. The 20th century brought further innovation in the insurance industry. In response to the Great Depression of the 1930s, the U.S. government created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to insure bank deposits up to a certain limit. In response to rising health care costs, many companies began offering health insurance benefits to their employees. And in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Congress created the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program (TRIP) to provide federal assistance to insurers in case of future terrorist attacks. Today, insurance is an essential part of our lives. We rely on it to protect us from a variety of risks, including financial losses due to accidents, illnesses, natural disasters and more. As we look to the future, it is likely that new types of risks will emerge and new insurance products will be developed to help us protect ourselves against them.