Because of the EC ruling there is likely to be a significant rise in life insurance premiums for women. Women have always fared better than men in the calculation of auto and life cover quotes. This is because women are statistically likely to live longer and to live more moderate lifestyles than their male counterparts. As a result of these findings insurers have long favoured the female demographic with auto insurance and life insurance rates that reflect the lesser likelihood of a pay-out.

While the ruling has certainly taken gender equality into account, many believe that it does little to accommodate for fairness. The calculation of premiums has always been based upon the amount of risk that is associated with insuring an individual. Because women tend to have a much lower likelihood of filing either life insurance claims or car insurance claims, it has always been the market standard to issue coverage rates for this demographic that are significantly lower than those for men.

There are numerous additional factors that are considered during the calculation of rates for most forms of coverage. It is standard practice for most insurers to assess all related forms of risk when issuing a new policy including the consumer history of the applicant. Gender based discounts however, account for the largest reason for the price gap in premiums between men and women of otherwise similar profiles.

Most women will be hard hit when it comes to purchasing car and life insurance as a result of the EC ruling. In fact, some women can anticipate increases as high as 20% for life insurance and 25% for automobile coverage. These increases come in addition to the already rising rates for most forms of insurance and serve to decrease the overall level of affordability for women. One of the things that can be done to offset these changes is to start pricing coverage before the ruling takes effect. Women that are able to lock into a premium before the EC ruling dictates equality in coverage rates will in many instances fare better than those that do not.

Tony writes around personal finance.