The concept of Life Insurance began with the rise of so-called “benevolent societies.” These organizations provided rudimentary forms of health and life insurance.
Gaius Marius, the third founder of Rome, started what was known as a “burial club.” He was a general in the army at the time, approximately 100 years before Christ.
Here’s how they worked:
Soldiers could opt into a burial club. Membership meant that other soldiers in the club that survived your death paid for your funeral. If you outlived them, you had to add money toward their funeral. This was important because the ancient Romans believed that failure to bury someone properly would result in a very miserable ghost.
The evolution of these burial clubs included a stipend for the deceased next of kin.
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