Short answers, pulled from the story.
The first modern insurance contract was created in Genoa in the year 1347. This single contract marked the birth of modern insurance even though the concept of sharing risk had been practiced for millennia before that ink dried.
Economist Nicholas Barbon and eleven associates established the first fire insurance company in 1681. They named the organization the Insurance Office for Houses and located it at the back of the Royal Exchange to insure brick and frame homes.
The first known policy of life insurance was made on the 18th of June 1583 in the Royal Exchange in London. This policy cost £383, 6s. 8d. for twelve months on the life of William Gibbons.
Chancellor Otto von Bismarck introduced old age pensions, accident insurance, and medical care in the 1880s. These measures formed the basis for Germany's welfare state and extended insurance beyond private contracts to national welfare systems.
The combined ratio is the ratio of expenses and losses to premiums. It measures underwriting performance with a ratio of less than 100% indicating an underwriting profit.
The Global Federation of Insurance Associations was formally founded in 2012. It succeeded the International Network of Insurance Associations which became active in 2008 and aims to increase insurance industry effectiveness in providing input to international regulatory bodies.