According to the Association of Estonian Insurance Companies (EKsL), 30% of the country’s population has life insurance. Last year, collected life insurance premiums reached EUR 60 per person, while non-life insurance amounted to EUR 347 per person, the Association wrote.

As the EKsL board member Andres Piirsalu noted, the desire of Estonian people to insure their lives is low. "While people consider vehicle and home insurance to be natural, insuring the risks related to their own health and family's livelihood is still not given enough attention. People often rely on government assistance, but this kind of carelessness in terms of financial survival can ultimately lead to a reduction in the risk of poverty”, Piirsalu said.

Piirsalu emphasized that stable, wealthy societies contribute significantly more to insurance. "If life insurance premiums collected in Estonia last year were EUR 60 per person, in Finland, for example, this amount was EUR 3,870 per person. We take out life insurance mainly to insure the risk related to death. Finns also have pension insurance and life insurance with investment, which in Estonia has a modest share compared to countries with a better standard of living", explained the EKsL board member.

According to Piirsalu, importance of life insurance depends not only on the health care system and the standard of living, but also on the historical experience of society. "If we have a colossal difference in life insurance premiums compared to Finland, we are similar to, for example, Poland, where last year life premiums were EUR 78 per person", he added.