National Insurance

National Insurance (NI) in the United Kingdom is a system of contributions paid by workers and employers towards the cost of certain state benefits. It was initially a contributory system of insurance against illness and unemployment, and later also provided retirement pensions and other benefits. It was first introduced by the National Insurance Act 1911, expanded by the Labour government in 1948 and has been subject to numerous amendments in subsequent years.

The contributions component of the system, "National Insurance Contributions" (NICs), is paid by employees and employers on earnings, and by employers on certain benefits-in-kind provided to employees. The self-employed contribute partly by a fixed weekly or monthly payment, and partly on a percentage of net profits above a certain threshold. Individuals may also make voluntary contributions, in order to fill a gap in their contributions record and thus protect their entitlement to benefits. Contributions are collected by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) through the PAYE system, along with Income Tax and repayments of Student Loans.

Insurance

Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss. It is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. An insurer, or insurance carrier (often called an "insurance company), is sells the insurance policy to customers. The customers, who are called the insured or policyholder, are the person or entity (which may be a private company or other organization) buying the insurance policy. The amount of money to the customer pays for a certain amount of insurance coverage is called the "premium". Risk management, the practice of appraising and controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice.

The transaction involves the insured making a payment to the insurer in exchange for the insurer's promise to compensate (indemnity) the insured in the case of a financial (personal) loss. The insured receives a contract, called the insurance policy, which details the conditions and circumstances under which the insured will be financially compensated. In the event that the insured experiences a financial or personal loss which is covered by the insurance policy, the insured makes an insurance claim to the insurer. Insurance company claims adjusters and other insurance company employees assess the claim. Insurance policies typically set out certain circumstances or actions which will void the insurance policy; if the insurance policy is voided, then the insurer may not have to pay out the claim.

National

National may refer to:

National Insurance number

The National Insurance number is a number used in the United Kingdom in the administration of the National Insurance or social security system. It is also used for some purposes in the UK tax system. The number is described by the United Kingdom government as a "personal account number". Because it is the only number allocated to almost every adult resident of the country, it is used for some limited purposes to check identity.

The number is sometimes referred to as a NI No or NINO.

Allocation of number

People born and resident in the UK are assigned an NI number at birth when said birth is registered (the date can usually be established from the prefix letters used), and siblings may have consecutive numbers—this is dependent on the payment of Child Benefit.

Persons from abroad who wish to work in the UK, or those to whom a number was not initially allocated as children, may apply for a number through the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The prefixes used are typically different from those used in the normal run.