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Subsidy Policies and Insurance Demand

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  • Jing Cai
  • Alain de Janvry
  • Elisabeth Sadoulet

Abstract

Using data from a two-year pricing experiment, we study the impact of subsidy policies on weather insurance take-up. Results show that subsidies increase future insurance take-up through their influence on payout experiences. Exploring mechanisms of the payout effect, we find that for households that randomly benefited from financial education, receiving a payout provides a one-time learning experience that improves take-up permanently. In contrast, households with poor insurance knowledge continuously update take-up decisions based on recent experiences with disasters and payouts. Combining subsidy policies with financial education can thus be effective in promoting long-run insurance adoption.

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  • Jing Cai & Alain de Janvry & Elisabeth Sadoulet, 2020. "Subsidy Policies and Insurance Demand," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 110(8), pages 2422-2453, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aecrev:v:110:y:2020:i:8:p:2422-53
    DOI: 10.1257/aer.20190661
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    2. Lichtenberg, Erik & Iglesias, Eva, 2022. "Index insurance and basis risk: A reconsideration," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    3. Matthew Stuart & Cindy Yu & David A. Hennessy, 2023. "The Impact of Stocks on Correlations of Crop Yields and Prices and on Revenue Insurance Premiums using Semiparametric Quantile Regression," Papers 2308.11805, arXiv.org.
    4. Luigi Biagini & Simone Severini, 2022. "Can Machine Learning discover the determining factors in participation in insurance schemes? A comparative analysis," Papers 2212.03092, arXiv.org, revised Dec 2022.
    5. Anita Mukherjee & Shawn Cole & Jeremy Tobacman, 2021. "Targeting weather insurance markets," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 88(3), pages 757-784, September.
    6. Che, Yuyuan & Feng, Hongli & Hennessy, David A., 2017. "The Geography and Psychology of Participation in U.S. Federal Crop Insurance Programs," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 259190, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    7. Mogge, Lukas, 2023. "A District-Level Analysis of the Effect of Risk Exposure on the Demand for Index Insurance in Mongolia," Ruhr Economic Papers 1018, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    8. de Janvry, Alain & Sadoulet, Elisabeth, 2020. "Using agriculture for development: Supply- and demand-side approaches," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    9. Fluhrer, Svenja, 2023. "Crowding-in or crowding-out: The effect of humanitarian aid on households’ investments in climate adaptation," MPRA Paper 117975, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Che, Yuyuan & Feng, Hongli & Hennessy, David, 2021. "Assessing Peer Effects and Subsidy Impacts in Technology Adoption: Application to Grazing Management Choices with Farm Survey Data," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315123, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    11. Stoeffler, Quentin & Opuz, Gülce, 2022. "Price, information and product quality: Explaining index insurance demand in Burkina Faso," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    12. De Janvry,Alain F., 2015. "Quantifying through ex post assessments the micro-level impacts of sovereign disaster risk financing and insurance programs," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7356, The World Bank.
    13. Laura Moritz & Lena Kuhn & Ihtiyor Bobojonov, 2023. "The role of peer imitation in agricultural index insurance adoption: Findings from lab‐in‐the‐field experiments in Kyrgyzstan," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(3), pages 1649-1672, August.
    14. Shukri Ahmed & Craig McIntosh & Alexandros Sarris, 2020. "The Impact of Commercial Rainfall Index Insurance: Experimental Evidence from Ethiopia," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 102(4), pages 1154-1176, August.
    15. Yuyuan Che & Hongli Feng & David A. Hennessy, 2020. "Recency effects and participation at the extensive and intensive margins in the U.S. Federal Crop Insurance Program," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 45(1), pages 52-85, January.
    16. Chen, I-Chun & Du, Xiaodong & Mitchell, Paul D., 2018. "Policy Implications of Joint versus Separate Estimation of Crop Insurance Demand," 2018 Annual Meeting, August 5-7, Washington, D.C. 273878, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    17. Alain de Janvry & Élisabeth Sadoulet, 2023. "Seven propositions to support and finance the agricultural sector in sub-Saharan Africa in the context of climate change WP324," Working Papers hal-04123941, HAL.
    18. Dougherty, John P. & Flatnes, Jon Einar & Gallenstein, Richard A. & Miranda, Mario J. & Sam, Abdoul G., 2020. "Climate change and index insurance demand: Evidence from a framed field experiment in Tanzania," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 155-184.
    19. Shukkri AHMED & Craig MCINTOSH & Alexandros SARRIS, 2017. "The Impact of Commercial Rainfall Index Insurance: Experimental Evidence from Ethiopia," Working Papers 4288, FERDI.
    20. Shukkri AHMED & Craig MCINTOSH & Alexandros SARRIS, 2017. "The Impact of Commercial Rainfall Index Insurance: Experimental Evidence from Ethiopia," Working Papers 4289, FERDI.
    21. Dougherty, John & Flatnes, Jon Einar & Gallenstein, Richard & Miranda, Mario J. & Sam, Abdoul G., 2017. "Investigating the Impact of Climate Change on the Demand for Index Insurance," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 258524, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G22 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Insurance; Insurance Companies; Actuarial Studies
    • G52 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Insurance
    • G53 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Financial Literacy
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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