According to IAV, this is a study conducted by IFM Research Company with 1,265 survey participants nationwide, including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Da Nang and Can Tho, in both urban and rural areas.
Mr. Nguyen Phong Cam, Deputy Secretary General of IAV, said that this is the first time in more than 30 years that the Vietnamese life insurance (BHNT) industry has conducted an independent study on people's awareness and behavior in this field.
The publication of the study not only provides a panoramic picture of the awareness and importance of life insurance in social life, but is also an important basis for management agencies, businesses and the entire insurance industry to build appropriate solutions to better serve people in the coming time," Mr. Nguyen Phong Cam shared.
Research results from IFM Research show that 89% of respondents assess life insurance as essential in life.
This rate reached 91% in the group that owns life insurance contracts, 86% in the group that does not own them and 91% in the group that used to own them.
At the same time, the study also recorded a relatively positive level of understanding of life insurance by survey participants.
Accordingly, 58% of participants self-assessed themselves as having a high level of understanding of life insurance. This rate is quite uniform between age groups: 57% in the 22-29 age group, 59% in the 30-40 age group and 58% in the over 40 age group.
However, the main reasons why life insurance is considered necessary are all related to the very basic needs of each family: 57% of respondents believe that life insurance helps protect against disease, accident, and death risks; 45% emphasize the role of financial stability for families.
Reality shows that the proactive inclusion of life insurance in the financial plan still has a certain gap.
Instead of using insurance as an active risk management tool, most people still maintain a "defensive" financial mindset.
When an incident occurs, the first solution they think of is to use savings (67%), cut spending (53%) or find additional sources of income (39%).
This reflects the fact that life insurance is still seen as an additional layer of protection, not yet a core solution in personal financial strategies.
Mr. Ralf Matthaes, CEO of IFM Research, said: "People's financial behavior is still defensive as the main thing. Although the demand and positive assessment of life insurance is high, the actual ownership ratio is still low. Life insurance is currently mainly seen as an additional layer of financial protection, not yet becoming a core risk management tool or long-term investment solution. This is both a challenge and an opportunity for brands to reshape the market through simplifying terms in insurance contracts, information transparency, improving the quality of consulting and formal financial education.
The study also pointed out the main barriers that prolong people's decisions to buy life insurance include: long premium payment times, prioritizing other savings/investment channels, financial difficulties or not seeing urgent needs. For the group of 22-29 years old, lack of appropriate advice is the biggest obstacle.
Notably, the study shows that financial pressure is the main reason for difficulty maintaining long-term contracts. The current average premium is about 1.8 million VND/month (22 million VND/year), which is considered a significant barrier when income fluctuates or when people do not clearly understand the actual value compared to expectations.
