The word "deductible" (/dɪˈdʌktəbl/) is often misspelled due to the unique combination of consonants and vowels within the word. The spelling of "deductible" follows the standard English rules for adding suffixes to base words. The base word "deduct" ends in a consonant, so the suffix "-ible" is added to create the adjective form. The pronunciation of "deductible" can also vary depending on dialect, with some speakers pronouncing the final syllable as "-uh-bul" instead of "-ə-bul".
A deductible is a specific monetary amount that an insured individual or policyholder must pay out of pocket before an insurance company will contribute towards the costs of a covered loss or claim. It represents the portion of an insurance claim that the policyholder is responsible for paying. Deductibles are commonly seen in various types of insurance, including health insurance, auto insurance, and homeowners insurance.
In the context of insurance, the deductible serves as a form of self-insurance, as the policyholder assumes a certain level of financial responsibility before the insurance coverage kicks in. The purpose of a deductible is to share the risk with the policyholder and discourage frequent or frivolous claims by making the insured party financially invested in the loss.
For instance, in auto insurance, if a policy has a deductible of $500 and the insured individual gets into an accident resulting in $2,000 of damage, they are responsible for paying the initial $500, while the insurance company covers the remaining $1,500. Therefore, the deductible acts as a threshold that the policyholder must reach before receiving reimbursement from the insurer.
Deductibles can vary depending on the insurance policy and the type of coverage. They are often chosen by the insured party when selecting a policy, with options ranging from low to high deductibles. Higher deductibles usually result in lower insurance premiums, whereas lower deductibles lead to higher premiums.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word deductible originated from the Latin term deductibilis, which comes from the verb deducere. Deducere is composed of two Latin words: de, meaning down or away, and ducere, meaning to lead or to bring. Therefore, deductible ultimately means able to be led away or capable of being subtracted.