Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - insurance

~ n 1 an arrangement with a company in which you pay them money each year and they pay the costs if anything bad happens to you, such as an illness or an accident  (health insurance | life insurance (=so that your family receive money if you die)) + agains  (insurance against permanent disability) + on  (Do you have insurance on your household contents?) claim for sth on your insurance (=get an insurance company to pay for something)  (We can probably claim for the damage on the insurance. | take out insurance (=start paying for insurance protection)) 2 the money that you pay regularly to an insurance company; insurance premium + on  (Insurance on my house is very high.) 3 the business of providing insurance  (He works in insurance.) 4 protection against something bad happening + agains  (I put an extra lock on the door as an added insurance against burglars.)  (- see also assurance (3), National Insurance)