Pandemic raises demand for insurance: study

The COVID-19 pandemic has touched the nerve of the public and stimulated greater demand for insurance, a new industry study finds.

The research was conducted by Tencent’s insurance platform WeSure, the Department of Risk Management and Insurance of Fudan University and the China Insurance and Social Security Research Center of Fudan Development Research Institute.

Regionally, areas where GDP per capita exceeds US$10,000 per person saw more significant premium growth during the epidemic period. Among them, Beijing and Guangdong, which have "SARS memory," ranked highest in terms of newly insured users.

Customers born in the 1980s have the strongest purchasing power, according to the study. Coupled with soaring prices of housing and consumer products, increasing likelihood of falling ill and other unexpected risks in life propel this group to seek more protection from insurance.

Females are taking out more insurance policies, WeSure added. The company’s data showed that before the outbreak, the majority of users who purchased insurance on its platform were men, while under the impact of the epidemic, the proportion of insured women jumped significantly.

Overall, the ratio of male-to-female policy holders on the platform decreased from 2:1 to 1:1 since the health crisis.

Women are more likely to buy insurance for their family members, especially the elderly, than their male counterparts. Demand for health coverage for the middle-aged and elderly population surged during the epidemic period, the report noted.

Internet insurance has emerged as a reassurance for the public thanks to contactless, convenient and accessible services. WeSure said its online platform added 25 million active users and insured 15 million people during the pandemic.

While catalyzing the transformation of the Internet insurance industry, the pandemic calls for further improvement to certain types of coverage including infectious disease health insurance and other products.