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By Vicente González
A brief history
 According to some authors, The Greeks and Romans
  introduced the origins of health and life insurance c. 600
  BCE when they created guilds called "benevolent societies"
  which cared for the families of deceased members, as well
  as paying funeral expenses of members.
 Guilds in the Middle Ages served a similar purpose.
 The Talmud deals with several aspects of insuring goods.
 Before insurance was established in the late 17th century,
  "friendly societies" existed in England, in which people
  donated amounts of money to a general sum that could be
  used for emergencies.
Brief history
 As    European civilization progressed, its social
  institutions and welfare practices also got more and
  more refined.
 With the discovery of new lands, sea routes and the
  consequent growth in trade, Medieval guilds took it
  upon themselves to protect their member traders from
  loss on account of fire, shipwrecks and the like
Brief history
 Since most of the trade took place by sea, there was
  also the fear of pirates. So these guilds even offered
  ransom for members held captive by pirates. Burial
  expenses and support in times of sickness and poverty
  were other services offered. Essentially, all these
  revolved around the concept of insurance or risk
  coverage. That's how old these concepts are, really.
 In 1347, in Genoa, European maritime nations entered
  into the earliest known insurance contract and
  decided to accept marine insurance as a practice.
Concept of life insurance
 Life insurance is a contract between the insurer and
  the policy owner. The insurer promises to pay a lump
  sum of money on the death of the insured person or
  persons. Or pay him the amount in case of critical or
  terminal illness. In return the policy owner pays a
  premium at regular intervals, such as monthly,
  quarterly, half yearly or annually.
 This premium is different with different insurance
  companies and the period of payment of the
  premiums may vary and this is decided at the time of
  buying the insurance.
The father of life insurance
 Elizur Wright is considered the father of life
  insurance. (12 February 1804–22 November 1885) was
  an American mathematician and abolicionist who was
  born in 1804 and died in 1885.
 He has been considered the "father of life insurance"
  for his pioneering work on actuarial tables.
 He is also sometimes called the "father of insurance
  regulation", as he campaigned that life insurance
  companies must keep reserves, and served as
  Massachusetts Insurance Commissioner.
Reasons for buying life insurance
 To safe our family in the event of any unforeseen happenings.
 It is important for us to save our family in the event of any unforeseen
  happenings such as death. We have to ask ourselves some questions
  concerning our family: If I were to die, would they be able to continue
  to live in the same house, and still be able to make the rent or mortgage
  payment? How can I be sure that I can provide for my family even after
  I’ve left this world?
 Life insurance serves many practical purposes. Obviously paying off
  debts so your family is not overburdened in your absence is very
  important. However, life insurance is equally important for your family
  members in order to allow them grieving time, and provide them with
  a little time to heal.
Reasons for buying life insurance
 To replace the income that is lost due to the policy
  holder´s death
 Funeral expenditure nowadays is costly. Paying for the
  services, at a time when we are still numb and reeling
  from the sudden loss of a loved one can be hard, to say
  the least. In such cases, a life insurance policy can
  come to our aid, by taking care of the funeral expenses.
Reasons for buying life insurance
 To pay off the mortgage
 When we purchase a term life insurance policy, we take
  into account all the money our family will need in case we
  are not around to help out. This includes our mortgage
  payments.
 To plan our children´s education
 Children are always asked what they want to be when they
  grow up. Doctor, Lawyer, Astronaut. And as a parent, you
  want to make sure nothing stands in their way, especially
  something like finances. The cost of education is
  increasing at a rapid pace across all levels. In order to
  ensure that you can pay for your children’s educations we
  need to buy life insurance.
Reasons for buying life insurance
 To pay for the burial expenses of the policy holder
 Death is a constant and no one can escape it. After a
 person dies it is important to get solved the problem of
 the payment for the burial expenses of the late. Life
 insurance covers those expenses. Without life
 insurance, the family will have to find way to settle the
 death expenses such as burial, coffin, etc.
Panamanian law concerning
insurance
 In 1996, the Republic of Panama adopted Law 59 (July 20, 1996)
  Law 60 (July 29, 1996) and Law 63 (September 19, 1996) which
  regulate Insurance Companies and the Professional of Insurance
  Brokers & Producers, Captive Insurance Companies and
  Reinsurance Activities respectively.
 Under this legislation, all companies or enterprises who
  undertake insurance activities, of any nature including bond
  bailiffs, are regulated by the Superintendent of Insurance. This
  also includes insurance brokers, adjusters and any person who is
  involved in insurance brokerage. Furthermore, this legislation
  covers any entity who promotes health, pension or retirement
  funds, and investment or saving schemes which issue policies or
  contracts (other than those covered by other special legislation,
  such as the securities legislation or special creations of law).
The Insurance Superintendent's
responsibilities
 Strengthen the growth of the insurance industry;
 Inspect and investigate the commercial operations and
  professional practices of the persons regulated by the
  law;
 Review, process and investigate the applications made
  for licenses of any nature under the insurance laws;
  and
 Enforce the insurance legislation.