Market Trends of Japan Life & Non-Life Insurance Industry
Increase in Number of Individual Insurance Policies and Policies in Force
In 2018, there were 22.53 million new policies (130.4% year-on-year, including converted contracts), and the amount of benefits was worth JPY 66.73 trillion (116.4% year-on-year, including the net increase arising from the conversions) for new individual insurance policies. The number of new policies and the amount of benefits significantly increased due to strong sales in whole-life, term-life, and cancer insurance. There were 181.29 million individual life insurance policies in force (104.8% year-on-year), and the total amount of benefits was worth JPY 848.69 trillion (99.5% year-on-year). The number of insurance policies in force has been increasing for 11 consecutive years. Moreover, the recent trend of supplementing medical coverage suppressed the amount of death coverage, and it remained equal to the previous year.
Dominance of Automotive Insurance:
Automobile insurance (including compulsory automobile liability insurance) accounts for 60% of Japan's net premium. A "classification system" determines premiums based on histories of accidents by policyholders. Auto-policy sales are dominated by governments, at 4% floating, and the direct sales are rising. Enormous changes are anticipated within the automobile industry, as advanced telematics become more widespread.
