Insurance demand in emerging Asian and OECD countries: a comparative perspective

Abstract

Purpose

In this paper, we aim to assess insurance demand across selected Asian and OECD countries during the period of the global financial crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

We collected data from 55 emerging Asian and OECD countries during the period of the global financial crisis. Our methodology relies on panel regressions. Separate models are run for the Asia/OECD economies and a follow-up distinction between high/low-income regions is also made.

Findings

We find that global financial crisis affects negatively the general insurance demand particularly in high-income region. Higher dependency ratio in Asia tends to decrease insurance demand, whereas education in case of Asia positively influences insurance demand indicating that higher literacy rate can be helpful to capture the potential customers. Our results further reveal that life insurance is an important driver for insurance demand in OECD countries, whereas general insurance demand is higher in the Asian economies.

Research limitations/implications

A limitation of this study is that data sets employed do not differentiate between different life and general insurance products.

Practical implications

This study is helpful for regulators, policymakers and insurance providers to evaluate, assess and monitor insurance demand in relevant countries.

Originality/value

This is one of the pioneering studies that have assessed insurance demand among emerging Asian and OECD countries during the period of the global financial crisis.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-08-2019-0523

Citation

Akhter, W., Pappas, V. and Khan, S.U. (2020), "Insurance demand in emerging Asian and OECD countries: a comparative perspective", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 47 No. 3, pp. 350-364. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-08-2019-0523