Passive Risk Retention :

Risk can also be retained passively. Certain risks may be unknowingly retained because of ignorance, indifference, or lasiness. This is often dangerous if a risk that is retained has the potential for destroying a person financially. For example, many persons with earned incomes are not insured against the risk of longterm disability under either an individual or group disability income plan. However, the adverse financial consequences of a long-term disability generally are more severe than premature death. Thus, people who are not insured against the risk of long-term disability are using the technique of risk retention in a most dangerous and inappropriate manner.

In summary, risk retention can be an extremely useful technique for handling risk, especially in a modern corporate risk management program. Risk retention, however, is appropriate primarily for high frequency, low severity risks where potential losses are relatively small. Except under unusual circumstances, an individual should not use the technique of risk retention to retain low frequency, high severity risks, such as the risk of catastrophic losses like earthquake and floods.