What makes life insurance different from a bond is that neither the individual insured nor the insurance company knows when that particular individual will die.
They enable insurance companies to customize their exclusions more easily and give companies more clarity on which risks are covered and which aren't But they appear to protect the insurers more than the insured.
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In the insurance market, for instance, an insurance policy may act as an incentive for the person insured to take more risks because he or she knows that the insurer will cover the cost of any damages.