Tax incentives and the demand for life insurance: evidence from Italy

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Jappelli, T; Pistaferri, L
• 署名单位: Stanford University; Stanford University; University of Salerno; University of Salerno
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/S0047-2727(01)00180-3
• 发表日期: 2003
• 页码: 1779-1799
• 关键词: tax incentives; portfolio choice

摘要

The theoretical literature suggests that taxation can have a large impact on household portfolio selection and allocation. In this paper we analyze the tax treatment of life insurance, considering the cancellation of tax incentives in Italian life insurance contracts for investors with high marginal tax rates and the introduction of incentives for those with low rates. Using repeated cross-sectional data from 1989 to 1998, we find that the tax reforms had no effect on the decision to invest in life insurance or the amount invested. The likely explanations are the lack of information and lack of commitment to long-term investment. (C) 2002 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.