How big is the gap between insured and uninsured risk, globally
$1.8T
Global insurance protection gap
The world produces $1.8 trillion in economic losses annually that insurance never covers. That gap widens each year as climate events, disease, and economic shocks outpace coverage in emerging markets.
Swiss Re Institute Sigma 2023 / Lloyd's of London
74%
Global deaths caused by NCDs
Non-communicable diseases kill 43 million people per year (2021 data, most recent available)
WHO Noncommunicable Diseases Key Facts
75%
SMEs are underinsured globally
Small & medium enterprises without adequate cover
Hiscox Global Protection Gap Report 2025
3 in 10
Lives covered by life insurance globally
Seven in ten people have no life cover
Swiss Re Institute / LIMRA World Insurance 2023
$432B
Global mortality protection gap hits a record high
Premium-equivalent terms — up from $423B in 2023 and $321B in 2014
Swiss Re Institute Global Mortality Protection Gap 2026
33 yrs
Life expectancy gap between nations
Monaco 87 yrs vs Central African Republic 54 yrs
UN World Population Prospects 2024 / Worldometer (live estimate)
Insurance penetration and buying behavior vary sharply by region
Insurance penetration by region
Premiums as % of GDP — higher is better protected
Global avg
6.8%
Swiss Re Sigma World Insurance 2025
Why people don't buy insurance
Top reasons cited by uninsured adults globally
LIMRA Life Insurance Barometer 2023
The diseases driving mortality — and whether coverage exists for them
The rising killers — and the coverage gap
Projected growth in cases/deaths by 2045–2050
589M people today (2024)
852.5M by 2050
57M people today
153M by 2050
17.9M deaths/yr
Rising in LMICs
4M deaths/yr
Fastest-growing cancer driver
IDF Diabetes Atlas 11th Ed. 2025 / Lancet Neurology 2022 / WHO 2024
World population with critical illness cover
<2%
covered
Almost entirely concentrated in the UK, US, and South Africa.
Swiss Re Institute / SCOR Global Life 2023
What people actually own, what gets paid out, and what kills the most
Life insurance ownership by generation
% of US adults who own at least one life insurance policy
LIMRA / Life Happens 2024 Insurance Barometer Study
97%
Life insurance claims paid
Individual life policies
The life insurance industry pays the vast majority of claims. Of individual life insurance claims submitted, 97% are approved and paid — dispelling the myth that insurers routinely deny claims.
American Council of Life Insurers 2024
Leading causes of death in the US
Annual deaths — and which are covered by critical illness insurance
CDC National Center for Health Statistics 2024
Cyber, pets, and the patchwork of state-by-state health coverage
$4.44M
Average data breach cost
Global average — first decline since 2020
IBM Cost of a Data Breach 2025
3.9%
US pets with insurance
6.4M of ~165M cats and dogs insured
NAPHIA State of the Industry 2025
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