MAJOR LIFE CHANGES EQUAL MORE PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY
17.03.2017
AS OUR TEAM DISCUSSED EXPERIENCES IN MORE INDIVIDUALISTIC CULTURES, IT WAS CLEAR THAT AS RESPONSIBILITIES GROW, SO DO THE REAL AND PERCEIVED NEEDS FOR INSURANCE. SIGNIFICANT LIFE CHANGES – BUYING AN APARTMENT OR CAR, GETTING MARRIED, OR HAVING CHILDREN – OFTEN SPUR THE NEED FOR MORE INSURANCE.
However, as we looked at our own experiences and those of the consumers we interviewed, we recognized that insurance is often an afterthought to these life experiences. It’s decidedly more exciting to focus on choosing a new car or building a new home than thinking about insurance. “My first experience with insurance was when I bought my apartment. The bank forced me to contract a liability insurance and a pension plan,” one team member said. Another noted that in Spain she was required to buy either a life insurance policy or insurance on the loan when she purchased her car.
While it might seem that important life events themselves are enough to trigger the need for more insurance, our experience and observations point to the fact that
“It’s often the influence of other people that directly affect our decisions about insurance.”
It might be parents, friends, or colleagues sharing their own experiences, or banks or lawyers who require insurance as part of a financial transaction that ultimately influence decisions to update insurance to match new responsibilities.