Mini insurance products, which lower premium burdens and allow customers to choose only the coverage they need, are driving changes in how people consume insurance. As a wide range of customized mini insurance products centered on everyday life-oriented coverage spreads, competition among insurers to secure customers is becoming even more intense.

According to the insurance industry on February 16, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance's direct sales product "Four Seasons Insurance" will switch to the spring plan next month after the current winter plan ends. Four Seasons Insurance is a small-amount, short-term insurance (mini insurance) product that covers risks that are more likely to occur in each season, and by signing up once per season, customers are protected until that season ends. Key coverage items to prepare for the spring season, when fine dust and pollen are severe, include diagnosis benefits for specific infectious diseases in spring, daily hospitalization benefits and surgery benefits for frequently occurring spring diseases (respiratory diseases), and diagnosis benefits for five specific major respiratory diseases.

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Compared to ordinary insurance products, mini insurance has a more limited scope of coverage and a shorter duration. Because the risk coverage is simple, the premiums are low, typically in the range of 10,000 to 20,000 won. From the insurers' perspective, they can utilize online platforms, which reduce costs such as sales commissions compared with other sales channels, making it possible to recover principal quickly. The industry expects a continued rollout of various low-priced insurance products that match emerging consumer demand and new lifestyles.

KB Insurance's "KB Direct My-Choice Cancer Insurance" puts its selectable structure at the forefront. Along with basic cancer diagnosis coverage, customers can choose additional cancer diagnosis coverage by body part. Since the types of cancer that individuals worry about differ, the product is designed so they can directly select and enroll in the coverage they want. Customers can also keep their existing insurance policies and add only the necessary coverage for areas where they felt protection was lacking, by taking out additional coverage for those specific parts.

NH Nonghyup Property & Casualty Insurance's "NH Hearim MBTI Insurance," which recommends coverage based on the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) personality type, is also gaining positive responses from consumers. For Feeling (F) type customers, it suggests coverage against voice phishing, and for Extraversion (E) type customers, it proposes fracture diagnosis coverage, among others. Out of a total of 14 coverage items, customers can design their protection to fit their personal situation and needs. The coverage scope has been expanded to include a variety of risks that can be encountered in daily life, such as depression, gout, alopecia areata, and damage from voice phishing, as well as mental health disorders that may arise in the workplace.

Kakao Pay Insurance has adopted a differentiation strategy in overseas travel insurance. Unlike conventional overseas travel insurance, which compensates only when an accident occurs, Kakao Pay Insurance's overseas travel insurance is the first in the industry to introduce a "no-claim refund," returning 10% of the premiums paid to users who return home safely without any accidents. In addition, customers can directly set the coverage limits for medical expenses due to injuries or illnesses that occur during overseas travel, as well as coverage for damage to personal belongings. By allowing customers to add or exclude only the special contracts they need, it enables flexible plan design tailored to the purpose and circumstances of the trip.

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In particular, mini insurance is playing an important role in helping digital insurers without face-to-face channels expand their customer base and establish themselves in the market. A Kakao Pay Insurance representative said, "The easy and simple subscription and claims process for mini insurance, reasonable premiums, and various discount benefits represent an approach that seeks to reinterpret insurance not merely as a means of protection, but as a daily-life service that considers the overall customer experience," adding, "Along with small-amount, short-term insurance, we will expand our portfolio to life-cycle-type and long-term insurance products to meet customer needs across their entire life cycle."