Country
Global pandemics, seriously ill children, and deteriorating public services rank among the greatest concerns for people in the Nordics, according to a recent survey AXA Partners commissioned.
“My or my family's personal finances” is another major concern of survey respondents. In Denmark and Finland, people are also concerned about the environment. Mantap Global conducted the survey in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland on behalf of AXA Partners. 1,000 people aged 18-70 were surveyed in each country.
So, how do we protect ourselves from what worries us most? While respondents mention things like self-care and saving money as preventative measure, insurance coverage is also seen as a sound form of protection. In all the surveyed countries, insurance ranked either number one – or among the highest on the list – of how people would prefer to protect themselves if “My children become seriously ill” or in the case of “Substandard healthcare”. However, this does not reflect how people currently opt to protect themselves; indeed, there’s a gap between the current situation and what people see as an ideal situation.
“For which of your concerns would you like to get insurance coverage?” Respondents in the Nordics are in general agreement when it comes to this question:
Thereafter, it varies between countries with the following areas, in no particular order:
My or my family's personal finances
Unemployment
Poor-quality healthcare
Accidents
Permanent disability
ID theft online
What about respondents’ biggest concern: the pandemic? How does one adequately protect oneself against such a phenomenon? Here, people employ various preventative measures, such as adhering to restriction, vaccination, and hygiene protocols. This was followed by “Nothing” and “Cannot protect oneself”. Regarding the pandemic, respondents do not feel that insurance is the solution to their concerns.
When respondents were asked to rank insurance needs, they replied as follows:
Respondents deemed insurance covering divorce, event tickets and cyberbullying as less important.
When respondents were asked about their expectations regarding insurance, the most common replies included good insurance terms, no hassles and fast compensation. Over 75 per cent think that it is “Important” or “Very important” for insurance to be easy to understand. “Good insurance terms” and “Affordability” were equally important. Simplicity in all its forms is important in all countries. It should be easy to sign up, easy to reach customer service, easy to file a claim, easy to make online claims, and receive a quick response to a claim. However, respondents felt it was not as important for an insurance company to be recommended by a trusted source. Nor was it critical that an insurance provider be known for compensating claims – or that it would accept payment by methods other than invoice.
What makes one insurance company better than another? The most common answers are good customer service and customer care. Swedes also mention value for money. Respondents’ worst experiences were related to denied compensation or poor service. When allowed to choose supplemental coverage options, responses varied from country to country. Some common services include an annual health check-up, legal assistance in the event of ID theft, the opportunity to talk to a psychologist a few times a year, help finding a new job in the event of unemployment, and a second opinion from another doctor when being diagnosed.
AXA Partners asked a randomly selected people aged 18-70 about their greatest concerns at the moment and how they protect themselves against these concerns. Mantap Global conducted the survey in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland in February 2021.
Contact your local AXA Partners representative in Sweden, Norway, Finland, or Denmark if you want to know more about survey results in your market.