In: Statistics and Probability
a. You are considering buying insurance for your new laptop computer, which you have recently bought for $1,200. The insurance premium for three years is $70. Over the three-year period there is an 10% chance that your laptop computer will require work worth $416, a 2% chance that it will require work worth $840, and a 2% chance that it will completely break down with a scrap value of $170.
Should you buy the insurance? (Assume risk neutrality.)
b. Consider the following cumulative probability
distribution.
x | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
P(X ≤ x) | 0.17 | 0.28 | 0.49 | 0.68 | 0.84 | 1 |
a. Calculate P(X ≤ 2). (Round your answer to 2 decimal places.)
b. Calculate P(X = 4). (Round your answer to 2 decimal places.)
(a) Whether to buy the insurance or not will depend on the expected expense on the laptop computer over the three-year period which is equal to
{ 0.1 * 416 + 0.02 * 840 + 0.02 * (1200 - 170) } = $ 79
Since the insurance premium of $70 is less than the expected expense, you should buy the insurance.
(b) P(X <= 2) = 0.49
P(X = 4) = P(X <= 4) - P(X <= 3)
= 0.84 - 0.68 = 0.16