The Korea Insurance Development Institute announced on the 20th that the average insurance premium for personal auto insurance last year was 692,000 won. This is a 3.6% decrease from the previous year (717,000 won).
The decrease in average premiums is attributed to the effects of lower auto insurance rates from insurance companies and an increase in subscriptions to advanced safety devices and mileage discount policies. Insurance companies offer discounts of up to 13% for each device when equipped with advanced safety devices (emergency braking and lane keeping). The penetration rate of advanced safety devices has been increasing annually, rising from 29.4% in 2022 to 35.2% in 2023, and 41.0% last year. The subscription rate for mileage policies also shows an increasing trend, from 78.8% in 2022 to 84.5% in 2023, and 87.3% in 2024.
Subscriptions through low-cost sales channels have also increased. Last year, insurance subscriptions through mobile and the internet accounted for 49.5%, up 2.5 percentage points from the previous year. Face-to-face (33.6%) and telemarketing (16.3%) subscriptions decreased by 2.0 percentage points and 1.1 percentage points, respectively. Insurance premiums through mobile and the internet are on average 18% cheaper than in-person channels. The subscription rate through the auto insurance comparison and recommendation service launched in January last year was only 0.6%.
Last year, the total number of subscriptions for personal auto insurance reached 18.82 million, a 1.7% increase from the previous year. The gross premium was 13.0185 trillion won, a 1.9% decrease. Among these, imports accounted for 2.92 million, an increase of 4.3% from the previous year, while electric vehicles reached 370,000, up 36.0%.
Korea Insurance Development Institute President Heo Chang-eon noted, "We will continue to support the development of various products to lower the burden of premiums and enhance convenience for insurance consumers through data utilization and digital innovation."