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Certain life insurance contracts accumulate cash values, which may be taken by the insured if the policy is surrendered or which may be borrowed against. Some policies, such as annuities and endowment policies, are financial instruments to accumulate or liquidate wealth when it is needed. See life insurance.

In many countries, such as the US and the UK, tax law provides that the interest on this cash value is not taxable under certain circumstances. This leads to widespread use of life insurance as a tax-efficient method of saving as well as protection in the event of early death.

Global insurance premiums grew by 9.7% in 2004 to reach $3.3 trillion. This follows 11.7% growth in the previous year. Life insurance premiums grew by 9.8% during the year due to rising demand for annuity and pension products. Non-life insurance premiums grew by 9.4% as premium rates increased. Over the past decade, global insurance premiums rose by more than a half as annual growth fluctuated between 2% and 10%.