In the United Kingdom, deductible is known as "excess". This makes sense when you think about it. Deductible is the amount of money that you are required to pay that is not covered by the insurance company. It was first introduced on commercial insurance policies by Norman Baglini in 1952. So much for Norman, he won't go down in my record book, but as far as the insurance industry is concerned, he's a pretty good guy with a great idea. The deductible is now standard on just about all insurance policies. The rule of thumb is that the higher your deductible, the lower your premium.