What the hell?!

[tree_and_leaf]

The DAAD (Deutsche Akademische Austauschdienst) provides a combined health and personal insurance scheme for visiting academics and students. The tarifs are as follows:

Men: € 69 per month.
Women: € 205.50 per month (not covering prescriptions for the Pill, which is ironic given that the only possible justification for a higher charge for women I can think of is that they might find themselves in an interesting and expensive condition).

I shall not be insuring myself with them. Sexist bastards!

Comments

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

(In this country, at least), women do have much, much higher claim rates on health insurance than men. The premiums reflect this.

On the other hand, they live longer than men. Life insurance premiums reflect this.

[lilliburlero.livejournal.com]

higher claim rates on health insurance [...] live longer

Who knows, the two might even be related... It seems a big discrepancy, all the same.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

They might indeed. I don't know of any research into it ... but that doesn't mean that no-one has done any.

My rule of thumb is that health insurance costs double for a woman, and that's excluding pregnancy complications - but that is only a rule of thumb.

[tree_and_leaf]

It's a heck of a discrepancy, and given that I've found a company who insures both sexes at the same rate, I know who I will be going for (apart from the principle, I couldn't actually afford the DAAD policy anyway....)

[lilliburlero.livejournal.com]

I've never heard of health insurers charging more for women: mind, I've had a combined policy with Himself since I stopped qualifying for student services. I wonder how much of that is "me" and how much "him"? As to price, it's more like the premium you quote for a man (a bit more) for both of us.

[tree_and_leaf]

It's all very well when you've got a national health system to fall back on....

What seems particualrly unfair here is that they don't adjust the charges for other factors such as smoking - is a female non-smoker really that much worse a risk than a male smoker?

[ellid.livejournal.com]

WHAT??? That can't be right - do they have an explanation for this outrageous overcharge?

[tree_and_leaf]

Nope, not a word. I went for the other company, who had the same charges for both sexes.

[dolorous-ett.livejournal.com]

That's a bit much! Are they trying to drive female insurees out of their business, or what?

[tree_and_leaf]

Goodness knows. Possibly they're relying on the fact that they're advertising to people who don't know their way round the system.

[cuiaalfheim.livejournal.com]

Oooooh.... OOOOOOOH!!!!!

(GLARING and puffing at the sheer blatant sexism)

What rot is this, I say?!

[tree_and_leaf]

My sentiments exactly!