Casinos are all the rage right now and it seems timely to relate it to another form of risk related item which most would prefer not to talk about, insurance.

In the financial planning line, it is common to hear remarks that one does not believe in insurance. These remarks are often made by people who feel that insurance is similar to gambling at the casino. They liken it to placing a bet with the insurer that the insured event does happen.

On the surface, the similarity of money wagered for a chance event is obvious. However, taking a deeper comparison, there are two main underlying differences.

Firstly, there is a fundamental difference in the chance event involved. In gambling, the event creates a new risk that has not existed before. For example, if one was to bet on dice, the event is the outcome on the dice. This event ......