Journal of Agricultural Economics and Development Vol. 1(5), pp. 106-114, November 2012 ISSN 2327-3151 ©2012 Academe Research Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Preferences of Micro-insurance products: Evidence from the mutual assistance fund in Vietnam

Son Hong Nghiem* and An Hoai Duong

¹The University of Queensland, Australia.

²Thai Nguyen University, Vietnam.

*Corresponding author. E-mail: h.nghiem@uq.edu.au. Tel: +61-7-3346-4785. Fax: +61-7-3346-4603.

Accepted 2 November, 2012

Abstract

This study investigates preferences of clients for microinsurance products using a case study from the Mutual Assistance Fund (MAF), the pioneer microinsurance provider in Vietnam.  The study aims to contribute to improving the ability of the young microinsurance industry in Vietnam to meet the needs of its clients, which in turn, will enhance its efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability. In addition, the study examines determinants of microinsurance and identifies potential gateways for microinsurance to serve the uninsured poor in the population. Our results reveal that the current premiums offered by the MAF seem too low and that they have no significant effect to the preferences of clients over product attributes. In the same line with Tran and Yun (2004), we found that clients are willing to pay higher premium in order to receive a higher level of benefit. In addition, the main factors that significantly affect product preferences are experiences in insurance, mathematical ability and attitude towards risk.

Key words: Microinsurance, Vietnam, conjoint analysis, client preferences.