Okuzeka
Insurance vocabulary · Underwriting & Risk

Risk

Meaning in insurance, with examples

/rɪsk/nounCore term

In insurance, risk means: The chance that something bad, such as an accident, illness or damage, will happen; in insurance it can also mean the person or property being insured.

In Turkish: risk, riziko, tehlike

How it is used

Used in two ways. In general, risks are assessed, reduced and transferred to an insurer. In underwriting talk, a risk is the thing insured: 'a good risk', 'a high-risk driver', 'we declined the risk'.

Example sentences

  1. Insurance lets a small business transfer the risk of fire to the insurer.

  2. A warehouse full of chemicals next to a petrol station is not an easy risk to place.

Common collocations

  • assess the risk
  • high-risk
  • transfer risk
  • accept a risk
  • decline a risk
  • risk assessmentA careful study of how likely a loss is and how serious it could be, used to decide whether and how to insure something.
  • underwritingThe process of studying a risk, deciding whether to insure it and setting the price and conditions of the policy.
  • perilA specific event or cause that can lead to a loss, such as fire, flood, storm, earthquake or theft.
  • moral hazardThe risk that people become less careful, or act dishonestly, because they know they are insured.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Underwriting & Risk

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not financial advice.