IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/insuma/v81y2018icp36-50.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Life insurance settlement and the monopolistic insurance market

Author

Listed:
  • Hong, Jimin
  • Seog, S. Hun

Abstract

We analyze the effects of life insurance settlement on insurance contract design, the insurer’s profit and welfare. Policyholders face not only mortality risks but also heterogeneous liquidity risks which lead the policyholders to surrender or settle the policies. It is assumed that the insurer cannot discriminate policyholders based on liquidity risks, and that no cost is incurred in surrender and settlement. We characterize the conditions for the endogenous existence of a settlement market, and find that the settlement market, if it exists, raises insurance premium. The effects of settlement on profit and welfare depend on the market structure. In the monopolistic insurance market, the settlement market lowers the insurer’s profit, and consumer welfare increases whenever demand increases and possibly increases even when demand decreases. This finding is in contrast with most of the existing studies reporting that settlement never has a positive effect on welfare. In the competitive insurance market, welfare always decreases.

Suggested Citation

  • Hong, Jimin & Seog, S. Hun, 2018. "Life insurance settlement and the monopolistic insurance market," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 36-50.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:insuma:v:81:y:2018:i:c:p:36-50
    DOI: 10.1016/j.insmatheco.2017.12.003
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167668717302846
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.insmatheco.2017.12.003?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Matthew Chambers & Carlos Garriga & Don E. Schlagenhauf, 2009. "Accounting For Changes In The Homeownership Rate," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 50(3), pages 677-726, August.
    2. Igal Hendel & Alessandro Lizzeri, 2003. "The Role of Commitment in Dynamic Contracts: Evidence from Life Insurance," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(1), pages 299-328.
    3. Olivia S. Mitchell, 1999. "New Evidence on the Money's Worth of Individual Annuities," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(5), pages 1299-1318, December.
    4. Nadine Gatzert & Gudrun Hoermann & Hato Schmeiser, 2009. "The Impact of the Secondary Market on Life Insurers’ Surrender Profits," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 76(4), pages 887-908, December.
    5. Mattias K. Polborn & Michael Hoy & Asha Sadanand, 2006. "Advantageous Effects of Regulatory Adverse Selection in the Life Insurance Market," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(508), pages 327-354, January.
    6. Froot, Kenneth A., 2001. "The market for catastrophe risk: a clinical examination," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(2-3), pages 529-571, May.
    7. Thierry Bréchet & Pierre M. Picard, 2010. "The Price Of Silence: Markets For Noise Licenses And Airports," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 51(4), pages 1097-1125, November.
    8. Nadine Gatzert, 2010. "The Secondary Market for Life Insurance in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States: Comparison and Overview," Risk Management and Insurance Review, American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 13(2), pages 279-301, September.
    9. Apps, Patricia F. & Rees, Ray, 1988. "Taxation and the household," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 355-369, April.
    10. Nan Zhu & Daniel Bauer, 2013. "Coherent Pricing of Life Settlements Under Asymmetric Information," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 80(3), pages 827-851, September.
    11. Eytan Sheshinski, 1972. "The Optimal Linear Income-tax," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 39(3), pages 297-302.
    12. John C. Harsanyi, 1955. "Cardinal Welfare, Individualistic Ethics, and Interpersonal Comparisons of Utility," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 63, pages 309-309.
    13. Georges Dionne (ed.), 2013. "Handbook of Insurance," Springer Books, Springer, edition 2, number 978-1-4614-0155-1, September.
    14. Glenn Daily & Igal Hendel & Alessandro Lizzeri, 2008. "Does the Secondary Life Insurance Market Threaten Dynamic Insurance?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 151-156, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Seog, S. Hun & Hong, Jimin, 2019. "The efficiency effects of life settlement on the life insurance market," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 395-412.
    2. Lin, Jyh-Horng & Li, Xuelian & Lin, Panpan, 2022. "Could we rely on credit swap hedging as a substitute for insurer blockchain technology involvement?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 266-281.
    3. Li, Xuelian & Zhou, Wei & Lin, Jyh-Jiuan & Chang, Ching-Hui, 2023. "Insurer financing for borrowing producers in a supply chain under alternative carbon allowance trades," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    4. Chen, Shi & Huang, Fu-Wei & Lin, Jyh-Horng, 2023. "Green technology choices under the cap-and-trade mechanism with insurer green finance in a dragon-king environment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    5. Li, Xuelian & Chen, Lingzhi & Lin, Jyh-Horng, 2023. "Cap-and-trade mechanisms, green technology investment, and shadow insurance in a black swan environment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    6. Shi Chen & Fu-Wei Huang & Jyh-Horng Lin, 2022. "Effects of Cap-and-Trade Mechanism and Financial Gray Rhino Threats on Insurer Performance," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-20, July.
    7. Chen, Shi & Huang, Fu-Wei & Lin, Jyh-Horng, 2022. "Life insurance policyholder protection, government green subsidy, and cap-and-trade transactions in a black swan environment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    8. Shi Chen & Jyh-Horng Lin & Wenyu Yao & Fu-Wei Huang, 2019. "CEO Overconfidence and Shadow-Banking Life Insurer Performance Under Government Purchases of Distressed Assets," Risks, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-25, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Georges Dionne & Casey Rothschild, 2014. "Economic Effects of Risk Classification Bans," The Geneva Risk and Insurance Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association for the Study of Insurance Economics (The Geneva Association), vol. 39(2), pages 184-221, September.
    2. Fang, Hanming & Wu, Zenan, 2020. "Life insurance and life settlement markets with overconfident policyholders," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    3. Michael Hoy & Afrasiab Mirza & Asha Sadanand, 2021. "Guaranteed renewable life insurance under demand uncertainty," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 88(1), pages 131-159, March.
    4. Kung, Ko-Lun & Hsieh, Ming-Hua & Peng, Jin-Lung & Tsai, Chenghsien Jason & Wang, Jennifer L., 2021. "Explaining the risk premiums of life settlements," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    5. Raj Chetty & Amy Finkelstein, 2012. "Social Insurance: Connecting Theory to Data," NBER Working Papers 18433, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Renaud Bourlès, 2017. "Prevention incentives in long‐term insurance contracts," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(3), pages 661-674, September.
    7. Fang, H., 2016. "Insurance Markets for the Elderly," Handbook of the Economics of Population Aging, in: Piggott, John & Woodland, Alan (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Population Aging, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 237-309, Elsevier.
    8. Seog, S. Hun & Hong, Jimin, 2019. "The efficiency effects of life settlement on the life insurance market," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 395-412.
    9. Daniel Bauer & Jochen Russ & Nan Zhu, 2020. "Asymmetric information in secondary insurance markets: Evidence from the life settlements market," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 11(3), pages 1143-1175, July.
    10. Christian Hilpert & Jing Li & Alexander Szimayer, 2014. "The Effect of Secondary Markets on Equity-Linked Life Insurance With Surrender Guarantees," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 81(4), pages 943-968, December.
    11. Bengt-Arne Wickström, 1984. "Economic justice and economic power: An inquiry into distributive justice and political stability," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 43(3), pages 225-249, January.
    12. Lockwood, Benjamin B. & Weinzierl, Matthew, 2015. "De Gustibus non est Taxandum: Heterogeneity in preferences and optimal redistribution," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 74-80.
    13. Ralph Koijen & Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, 2018. "Financing the War on Cancer," NBER Working Papers 24730, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Peter, Richard & Richter, Andreas & Thistle, Paul, 2017. "Endogenous information, adverse selection, and prevention: Implications for genetic testing policy," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 95-107.
    15. Arthur Snow, 2015. "Monopolistic Insurance and the Value of Information," Risks, MDPI, vol. 3(3), pages 1-13, July.
    16. J. David Cummins & Georges Dionne & Robert Gagné & Abdelhakim Nouira, 2021. "The costs and benefits of reinsurance," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 46(2), pages 177-199, April.
    17. Radoslaw Paluszynski & Pei Cheng Yu, 2023. "Commitment versus Flexibility and Sticky Prices: Evidence from Life Insurance," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 49, pages 99-122, July.
    18. Posey, Lisa L. & Thistle, Paul D., 2021. "Genetic testing and genetic discrimination: Public policy when insurance becomes “too expensive”," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    19. Hanming Fang & Edward Kung, 2021. "Why do life insurance policyholders lapse? The roles of income, health, and bequest motive shocks," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 88(4), pages 937-970, December.
    20. Tan, Ken Seng & Wei, Pengyu & Wei, Wei & Zhuang, Sheng Chao, 2020. "Optimal dynamic reinsurance policies under a generalized Denneberg’s absolute deviation principle," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 282(1), pages 345-362.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:insuma:v:81:y:2018:i:c:p:36-50. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505554 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.