Your gender will affect your car insurance premiums. Women are able to obtain cheaper car insurance than men. Insurance is all about safeguarding against risk. Insurance companies make use of risk profiles and these are based on statistics drawn up by actuaries. When insurance companies set premiums they take into account all the factors influencing the risk they are expected to insure.
The statistics have revealed that women pose a lower risk to car insurance companies than men. Claims from female drivers have been fewer and also of a lower monetary value as women tend to be involved in less serious accidents.
The fact that women can obtain cheaper car insurance has sparked a heated debate as the assumption was made that women must be better drivers than men. This is not the reason why women can qualify for lower car insurance premiums; it’s all about the risks. Men—by their nature—are bigger risk takers, drive faster and therefore are involved in more serious car accidents than women. They pose a much higher risk than female drivers and pay for that in the form of higher premiums.
Women now have the choice of car insurance products specifically designed for them and with added benefits build around their needs.
The term General Insurance refers to any insurance that is not classified as long-term. Long-term business includes Life Insurance and Pensions. General Insurance include short-term insurance such as car and household insurance.
The word gross is often used in short term insurance, such as car insurance terms. Let us look at some of them:
Gross Negligence: If you want to claim from your car insurance after causing an accident while driving recklessly, without regard to life or limb, under the influence of drugs or alcohol, it will be called gross negligence. Gross negligence is being very seriously negligent and the insurance company will refuse to pay out anything on your claim. Not only was your behaviour grossly negligent it is also against the law and therefore an exclusion in car insurance policies. You cannot obtain insurance for any illegal act.
Gross is also often used in bookkeeping terms, meaning before deductions – when referring to income the term gross income means before the deduction of tax.
Gross claim amounts are the amounts payable by an insurance company before allowances is made for credits that may be due in the form of reinsurance, subrogation or salvage.
Gross premium income refers to the premiums due by insured persons to an Insurance Company for all the insurance contracts on its books before any deduction is made for the cost of re-insurance. (See re-insurance in this glossary for more details.)