Decomposing bodies and a terrible stench… Background of the “Surge in Demand” for Solitary Death Insurance
Nonfiction writer Kota Ishii delves into the depths of Japanese society!
Japan is one of the world’s leading countries in terms of “lonely deaths”. Some foreign media even refer to this as the Japanese word “kodokushi”.
Did you know that in such a country like Japan, loneliness death insurance is now gaining momentum?
In a society where people tend to isolate themselves easily, many people, even those who are not elderly, are concerned about dying alone. Especially if you are a single person in a household, you have probably thought at least once about what happens after you suddenly lose your life.
The same is true for those who provide apartments and other rental properties. Whether they are owners or real estate agents, one of the concerns they have is that their tenants will die alone.
What if I die unnoticed and am found decomposing?
What if I die alone and my residence is contaminated by my death?
Such fears are swirling around both renters and lessees in Japan today.
Ten times more likely to die in a traffic accident
Solitary death insurance is precisely the kind of thing that can enter into such darkness and shine a light on it, for better or worse. That is why, as a product, it is rapidly spreading throughout Japan.
Through this solitary death insurance, let’s consider some cases of lonely deaths in Japan today.
Currently, it is estimated that the number of people who die alone in Japan and are not found for more than two days after their death is 25,000 to 30,000 per year.
The number of deaths due to traffic accidents in 2021 was 2,636. Considering this, the number of solitary deaths is roughly 10 times the number of deaths from traffic accidents.
Middle-aged men in their 60s in single-person households are the most common group of solitary deaths. Women are less common because they have more companionship than men, and the late elderly are less common because they need care and oversight. In their case, sudden death tends to be quickly detected.
In other words, in most cases, middle-aged men who think they are still healthy but are isolated from society suddenly fall ill with heart or brain disease and remain so for days without anyone noticing.
