Insurance Glossary, Life Insurance

Your Age, Sex and Marital Status
Statistics show that the frequency of accidents is higher for males than females. Teenagers have more accidents than adults and single people have more accidents than married people. High accident frequencies mean higher insurance premiums.

Your Residential Location
Congested areas such as cities, have heavier traffic and more thefts and vandalism. Consequently, these areas pay higher insurance premiums than rural areas.

Type of Vehicle and Vehicle Use
Some vehicles cost more to repair than others do and therefore cost more to insure. Higher insurance premiums are also the result of vehicle usage, such as business use and vehicle performance, such as turbo or other high performance engines.

One of biggest factors affecting premium is Liability Claim Lawsuits. According to the Insurance Information Institute, claims for bodily injury liability from 1985 - 1988 rose more than 13 percent a year. Fourteen of the 15 states with the highest auto insurance premiums were also among the 15 states with the highest bodily injury paid claim costs.

The number of suits being filed is increasing. Since 1981, auto lawsuit filings in California have increased by more than 50 percent. Because insurers are obligated to pay defense costs even in minor or frivolous lawsuits, increases in filing lawsuits mean increases in their cost of doing business.