History of Life Insurance

It is believed that life insurance policies started around 3000BC when merchants in Sumer and Babylonia used to protect themselves and their businesses from losses of their ships and cargo from thieves and pirates. The earliest form of life insurance can be traced to Greek and Roman times where benevolent societies were set up that would help families pay for the funeral expenses if someone in their family died, which then moved on to paying for living expenses as well. In the Middle Ages guilds or crafts were set up, like a life insurance company, where workers paid premiums that would go to helping and supporting families of workers who had died.