Switching health insurers: the role of price, quality and consumer information search

Abstract

We examine the impact of price, service quality and information search on people’s propensity to switch health insurers in the competitive Dutch health insurance market. Using panel data from annual household surveys and data on health insurers’ premiums and quality ratings over the period 2006–2012, we estimate a random effects logit model of people’s switching decisions. We find that switching propensities depend on health plan price and quality, and on people’s age, health, education and having supplementary or group insurance. Young people (18–35 years) are more sensitive to price, whereas older people are more sensitive to quality. Searching for health plan information has a much stronger impact on peoples’ sensitivity to price than to service quality. In addition, searching for health plan information has a stronger impact on the switching propensity of higher than lower educated people, suggesting that higher educated people make better use of available health plan information. Finally, having supplementary insurance significantly reduces older people’s switching propensity.