Who is Changing Health Insurance Coverage? Empirical Evidence on Policyholder Dynamics
Journal
Journal of Risk and Insurance
ISSN
0022-4367
ISSN-Digital
1539-6975
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2014-08-06
Author(s)
Abstract
Long-term health insurance contracts provide policyholders with the option of lapsing coverage or switching to another tariff within the same insurance company. We empirically analyze policyholder behavior regarding contract commitment in a large data set of German private health insurance contracts. We show that short-term as well as long-term premium development, along with premium adjustment frequency, affect lapse and tariff switch rates. Moreover, the sales channel has a strong impact on switching behavior, indicating that policyholder choice is not fully independent of sales representatives. Our results are important for risk assessment and risk management of portfolios of health insurance contracts and provide better understanding of the dynamics of policyholder behavior in health insurance.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Blackwell
Publisher place
Malden, Mass.
Volume
83
Number
2
Start page
269
End page
300
Pages
31
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
231036