Reinsurance is insurance for insurance companies. It’s a way of transferring some of the financial risk insurance companies assume in insuring cars, homes and businesses to another insurance company, the reinsurer.
A growing number of insurers are tapping into markets in developing countries through microinsurance projects, which provide low-cost insurance to individuals generally not covered by traditional insurance or government programs.
Accounting is a system of recording, analyzing and reporting an organization’s financial status. In the United States, all corporate accounting and reporting is governed by a common set of standards, known as generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, established by the independent Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).
Life insurance was once sold primarily by career life agents, also known as captive agents, representing a single insurance company, and by independent agents, representing several insurers. Now, life insurance is sold directly to the public by mail, telephone, and the Internet. Independent insurance agents have the largest share of the market, followed by affiliated agents.
The insurance industry is a major U.S. employer, providing some 3.0 million jobs in 2024 that encompass a wide variety of careers, including engineering and data science, human resources, public relations, and financial analysts. Some jobs, including claims adjusters, actuaries and insurance underwriters, are unique to the insurance industry. But other roles are also needed, such as art historians and drone pilots. For further information, consult the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook, which includes these entries: