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BWE Glossary of Insurance Terms
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Immediate Annuity
An annuity providing for payment to begin immediately.
Immediate Participation Guarantee Plan (IPG)
Type of pension plan in which all pension contributions are deposited in an unallocated fund and used directly to pay benefits to retirees.
Imputed Negligence
Case in which responsibility for damage can be transferred from the negligent party to another person, such as an employer.
Incontestability
Life policies provide that, except for non-payment of premiums and certain other circumstances, the policy shall be incontestable after the policy has been in force for two years during the lifetime of the insured.
Incontestable Clause
An optional clause which may be used in noncancelable or guaranteed renewable health insurance contracts providing that the insurer may not contest the validity of the contract after it has been in force for two (sometimes three) years.
Incurred Claims
Incurred claims equal the claims paid during the policy year plus the claim reserves as of the end of the policy year, minus the corresponding reserves as of the beginning of the policy year. The difference between the year end and beginning of the year claim reserves is called the increase in reserves and may be added directly to the paid claims to produce the incurred claims.
Incurred-but-not-reported (IBNR) reserves
Liability account on an insurer's balance sheet reflecting claims that are expected based upon statistical projections but which have not yet been reported to the insurer.
Indemnification
Compensation to the victim of a loss, in whole or in part, by payment, repair, or replacement.
Indemnity
Legal principle that specifies an insured should not collect more than the actual cash value of a loss but should be restored to approximately the same financial position as existed before the loss.
Indemnity Insurance
Traditional insurance that pays for specific covered services.
Independent Adjuster
Claims adjuster who offers his or her services to insurance companies and is compensated by a fee.
Independent Agent
An independent business person who usually represents two or more insurance companies in a sales and service capacity and who is paid on a commission basis.
Independent Agency System
Type of property and liability insurance marketing system, sometimes called the American agency system, in which the agent is an independent businessperson representing several companies. The agency owns the expirations or renewal rights to the business, and the agent is compensated by commissions that vary by line of insurance.
Indeterminate Premium Whole Life Insurance
Nonparticipating whole life policy that permits the insurer to adjust premiums based on anticipated future experience. Initial premiums are guaranteed for a certain period. After the initial guaranteed period expires, the insurer can increase premiums up to some maximum limit.
Individual Contract
A contract of health insurance made with an individual called the policy holder or the insured, which normally covers such individual and, in certain instances, members of his family.
Individual Deductible
Amount that an insured and each person of his or her family covered by the policy must pay before the group or individual medical insurance policy begins to pay for medical expenses.
Individual Insurance
Policies which provide protection to the policyholder and/or his/her family. Sometimes called Personal Insurance as distinct from group and blanket insurance.
Individual Policy Pension Trust
A type of pension plan, frequently used for small groups, administered by trustees who are authorized to purchase individual level premium policies or annuity contracts for each member of the plan. The polices usually provide both life insurance and retirement benefits.
Individual Retirement Account (IRA)
An account to which an individual can make annual contributions of 100% of earnings up to $2,000 ($2,250 for a one-income married couple). These contributions are tax deductible for most workers.
Industrial Life Insurance
Life insurance issued in small amounts, usually less than $1,000, with premiums payable on a weekly or monthly basis. The premiums are generally collected at the home by an agent of the company. Sometimes referred to as debit insurance.
Industrial Life Insurance
A class of life insurance that is usually issued with protection amount of less than $1,000 and premiums usually payable weekly or at most, monthly
Inflation-Guard Endorsement
Endorsement added at the insured's request to a homeowners policy to increase periodically the face amount of insurance of the dwelling and other policy coverage's by a specified percentage.
Inheritance tax
A tax on the right of an heir to receive property at the death of another.
Initial Past Service Liability
The actuarial value (single sum) of the past service benefits as of the effective date of the establishment of the plan, or at the date of the latest liberalization. The maximum annual past service contribution allowable for tax deduction is the amount necessary to amortize past service liabilities and other supplementary pension or annuity credits over 10 years. Funding of the past service liability over a period of 30 years (40 in some cases) is required by the Internal Revenue Service under ERISA.
Initial Reserve
In life insurance, the reserve at the beginning of any policy year.
Injury Independent of All Other Means
An injury resulting from an accident, provided that the accident was not caused by an illness.
Inland Marine Insurance
A broad form of insurance, generally covering articles in transit as well as bridges, tunnels and other means of transportation and communication. Besides goods in transit (generally excepting trans-ocean), it includes numerous floater policies, such as those covering personal effects, personal property, jewelry, furs, fine arts, and other items.
Inspection Report
A report (usually written) of an investigation of an applicant, conducted by an independent agency that specializes in insurance investigations. The report covers such matters as occupation, financial status, health history, and moral problems.
Insolvent
Having insufficient financial resources (assets) to meet financial obligations (liabilities).
Insurability
Acceptability to the company of an applicant for insurance.
Insurable Risk
The conditions that make a risk insurable are
(a) the peril insured against must produce a definite loss not under the control of the insured,
(b) there must be a large number of homogeneous exposures subject to the same perils,
(c) the loss must be calculable and the cost of insuring it must be economically feasible,
(d) the peril must be unlikely to affect all insured's simultaneously, and
(e) the loss produced by a risk must be definite and have a potential to be financially serious.
Insurance
A system under which individuals, businesses, and other organizations or entities, in exchange for payment of a sum of money (a premium), are guaranteed compensation for losses resulting from certain perils under specified conditions.
Insurance
Protection by written contract against the financial hazards (in whole or in part) of the happenings of specified fortuitous events.
Insurance Company
An organization chartered to operate as an insurer.
Insurance Company
Any corporation primarily engaged in the business of furnishing insurance protection to the public.
Insurance Commissioner
The top insurance regulatory official in a state.
Insurance Exchange
Term used to describe a facility that exists in a few states to provide a market for reinsurance and for the insurance of large and unusual domestic and foreign risks that are difficult to insure in the normal markets. Examples are the New York Insurance Exchange, the Insurance Exchange of the Americas, and the Illinois Insurance Exchange.
Insurance Examiner
The representative of a state insurance department assigned to participate in the official audit and examination of the affairs of an insurance company.
Insurance Guaranty Funds
State Funds that provide for the payment of unpaid claims of insolvent insurers.
Insurance Services Offices (ISO)
Major rating organization in property and liability insurance that drafts policy forms for personal and commercial lines of insurance and provides rate data on loss costs for property and liability insurance lines.
Insured
A person or organization covered by an insurance policy, including the named insured and any other parties for whom protection is provided under the policy terms.
Insured or Insured Life
The person on whose life the policy is issued.
Insurer
The party to the insurance contract who promises to pay losses or benefits. Also, any corporation engaged primarily in the business of furnishing insurance to the public.
Insuring Agreement
That part of an insurance contract that states the promises of the insurer.
Insuring Clause
The clause which sets forth the type of loss being covered by the policy and the parties to the insurance contract.
Integration
A coordination of pension, disability or other benefit with the other sources of income, such as Social Security benefit, through a specific formula designed to ensure reasonable income replacement.. Qualified plans must integrate so that total benefits are non-discriminatory between rank and file employees and owners, officers or highly compensated employees.
Inter vivos trust
A trust created while the creator of the trust is living. Also known as a living trust.
Interest
Money paid for the use of money.
Interest-Adjusted Method
Method of determining cost to an insured of a life insurance policy that considers the time cost of money by applying an interest factor to each element of cost. See Also Net payment cost index; surrender cost index.
Interest Option
Life insurance settlement option in which the principal is retained by the insurer and interest is paid periodically.
Intestate
Without a will
Investment Income
The income generated by a company's portfolio of investments (such as in bonds, stocks, or other financial ventures).
Investment Income
The portion of a company's income which is derived from its investments, including interest and dividends on stocks and bonds.
Investment Only Contract
Type of funding instrument that uses only the investment services of an insurer.
Irrevocable Beneficiary
Beneficiary designation allowing no change to be made in the beneficiary of an insurance policy without the beneficiary's consent.
Irrevocable Trust
A trust in which the creator does not reserve the right to reacquire the trust property.
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