> If it has to make any profits - or at least pay salaries - it's guaranteed to be a bad deal for everyone.

It is insurance. You pay money, the company takes away the risk. That doesn't make it a bad deal, that makes it a service. That is like complaining about a hypothetical garbage company that charges for taking away trash even though the trash might have some notional value.

Insurance isn't an investment scheme. If you want to pay money for a positive-expected-value deal, go buy stocks and bonds.