GLOSSARY. Casualty insurance insures against accidents, not necessarily tied to any specific property.

Casualty insurance insures against accidents, not necessarily tied to any specific property.

Credit insurance pays some or all of a loan back when certain things happen to the borrower such as unemployment, disability, or death.

Health insurance covers medical bills incurred because of sickness or accidents.

Home insurance, or homeowners insurance, is an insurance policy that combines various personal insurance protections which can include losses occurring to one's home, its contents, loss of its use (additional living expenses), loss of other personal possessions of the homeowner, as well as liability insurance for accidents that may happen at the home.

Liability insurance covers legal claims against the insured. The protection offered by a liability insurance policy is two-fold: a legal defense in the event of a lawsuit commenced against the policyholder, plus indemnification (payment on behalf of the insured) with respect to a settlement or court verdict.

Life insurance provides a cash benefit to a decedent’s family or other designated beneficiary, and may specifically provide for burial and other final expenses.

Annuities provide a stream of payments and are generally classified as insurance because they are issued by insurance companies and regulated as insurance. Annuities and pensions that pay a benefit for life are sometimes regarded as insurance against the possibility that a retiree will outlive his or her financial resources. In that sense, they are the complement of life insurance.

Nuclear incident insurance covers damages resulting from an incident involving radioactivive materials is generally arranged at the national level.

Perpetual insurance – a type of homeowners insurance policy written to have no term, or date, when the policy expires. From the effective start date, the coverage exists for perpetuity.

Political risk insurance can be taken out by businesses with operations in countries in which there is a risk that revolution or other political conditions will result in a loss.

Property insurance provides protection against risks to property, such as fire, theft or weather damage. This includes specialized forms of insurance such as fire insurance, flood insurance, earthquake insurance, home insurance, inland marine insurance or boiler insurance.

Travel insurance – an insurance cover taken by those who travel abroad, which covers certain losses such as medical expenses, lost of personal belongings, travel delay, personal liabilities etc.

Workers’ compensation insurance replaces all or part of a worker’s wages lost and accompanying medical expense incurred due to a job-related injury.

Underwriting profit – a term used in the insurance industry. It consists of the earned premium remaining after losses have been paid and administrative expenses have been deducted. It does not include any investment income earned on held premiums.

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