Insurance: A Financial Safety Net

This post was written by Georgette Green, librarian in the Science & Business Reading Room. 

The term “safety net” originally appeared in its literal sense in 1840 as a reference to a protective net, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. The safety net was designed to prevent injuries in the event of a fall. Thirty years later, a figurative meaning for the term emerged, defining a “safety net” as “a safeguard against potential hardship or adversity”.

Today safety nets can come in the form of insurances, savings, or rainy-day funds. So, what types of safety nets do you have in place?

Insurance provides protection against financial losses from unforeseen events, such as health issues, property damage, death, natural disasters, and accidents. Insurance also provides peace of mind for individuals as they get a financial safety net to guard against life’s uncertainties.

The concept of insurance dates to around 1750 B.C. under the reign of King Hammurabi of Babylon. The Code of Hammurabi, a set of 282 laws carved into a block of black diorite, served as the legal framework for exchanging goods and services. The laws addressed various questions regarding individual rights and contracts related to real and personal property.

The insurance industry has evolved significantly since then, and the Library of Congress offers extensive resources on different facets of the insurance industry, such as fire, health, life, automotive, and homeowners’ insurance. These resources include books, trade publications, newspapers, and industry reports, all of which are findable through our catalog and digital collections.

While researching historical insurance periodicals, for example, I discovered The Insurance News, a monthly publication from the late 19th century. The library holds issues from 1885 to 1925. This publication would be useful for researchers studying the evolution of the insurance industry, marketing strategies of insurance companies, or the use of financial planning.

Although it included few photographs, The Insurance News was an informative resource for both consumers and agents. The publication contained updates from the industry, advertisements from insurance companies, brief editorials, annual reports, obituaries, career opportunities for agents and brokers, and analyses of industry trends.

One editorial in particular caught my attention in the February 1912 edition of Insurance News, “Who Will Be Your Executor?” written by J.J. Jackson. In the article, Jackson encouraged individuals to create wills and appoint trusted executors to manage their estates. He also proposed that insurance agents learn skills in writing wills and financial planning. With the newly acquired skills, agents would become experts and more effective advisors, better able to help protect an individual’s estate.

Insurance has been an important topic for centuries and remains a key component of financial planning and risk management. The Business Section’s new Insurance Industry: A Resource Guide is now available. It provides an overview of the various types of insurance, covering the history of insurance, trade associations, statistical resources, industry news analysis, regulations, and finding aids.

Check out This Month in Business History to explore more historical moments related to the insurance industry.

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