This paper provides an empirical test of the demand side of Thakor's (1982) theory of bond insurance signaling, namely … that the insurance premium charged by municipal bond insurers provides a signal to the market that reduces asymmetric …-08 financial crisis. We find empirical evidence consistent with the theory that the bond insurance premium provides a signal to the …

positive relation between self-insurance and state taxes is detected, consistent with consumers opting to self-insure rather … demand is largely inelastic, e.g., automobile liability coverage, taxes do not affect self-insurance …

Insurance has an intertemporal aspect as insurance premia have to be paid up front. We argue that the financing of … insurance is key to understanding basic insurance patterns and insurers' balance sheets. Limited enforcement implies that … insurance is globally monotone increasing in household net worth and income, incomplete, and precautionary. These results hold …

Home equity insurance policies, policies insuring homeowners against declines in the price of their homes, would bear … some resemblance both to ordinary insurance and to financial hedging vehicles. A menu of choices for the design of such … insurance company in effect serves as a retailer to homeowners of short positions in real estate futures markets or of put …