Australia has an insurance penetration rate of 3.5%, the sixth-highest in a Lloyd’s underinsurance study of 43 economies.

The country placed 10th in the last survey, in 2012, when penetration – based on total premium as a percentage of GDP – was 3%.

The Netherlands tops the new list at 7.7%, followed by South Korea (5%), the US (4.3%), New Zealand (4.2%) and Canada (4.1%).

Lloyd’s says underinsurance remains a huge problem in the Asia-Pacific, despite the region’s exposure to natural disasters.

Asia-Pacific accounts for $US134 billion ($188 billion) of the world’s $US162.5 billion ($229 billion) overall insurance gap.

Half of the 18 economies with insurance gaps are from the region, with China recording the biggest exposure at $US76 billion ($106.9 billion).

Lloyd’s study was conducted with the UK’s Centre for Economics and Business Research.