(IFAwebnews) – About one-in-10 insurance professionals works in California, the most of any state, according to a new report.

Property-casualty insurers provided 297,431 California jobs in 2008, or more than 10% of the nation’s insurance workforce. California insurance jobs accounted for $20.7 billion in compensation, according to a new Insurance Information Institute report.

Meanwhile, the property-casualty insurance sector contributed $30.1 billion to California’s gross state product in 2007, the report said.

The money contributed by the property-casualty sector is about 2% of the state’s $1.85 trillion economy, according to the Insurance Information Institute report.

In 2009, property and casualty insurance claims payments totaled $28.7 billion in California, while life insurance claims and benefits payouts in California totaled almost $41.8 billion.

California collected $2.05 billion in premium taxes from insurers in 2009, nearly double that of the next leading state.

Californians insure substantially more cars – roughly 24 million in all – than drivers in any other state.