Prior to the present Association's establishment in 1946, its origin can be traced back to 1917, when the Joint Fire Insurance Association of Japan was founded by domestic and foreign insurance companies then operating in Japan. In 1939 the Joint Association was reorganized as the Dai-Nippon Fire Insurance Association. In 1941 it was amalgamated with several marine insurance organizations, such as the Japan Marine Underwriters' Association and the Hull Insurers' Union, established in 1920 and 1927 respectively, into the former Marine and Fire Insurance Association of Japan consisting of only domestic companies as regular members. The following year, in 1942, its name and functions were changed to the Non-Life Insurance Control Association assisting the government in the control of the industry during a chaotic economic period. Shortly after the hostilities ended, in September 1945, however, this Control Association was dissolved.

The Marine and Fire Insurance Association of Japan was reestablished on April 1, 1946, by all the domestic general insurance companies. On May 1, 1948, it was reorganized as an incorporated body. On May 20, 2003, it changed its English name to the General Insurance Association of Japan (GIAJ).

The objective of the GIAJ is to promote sound development and maintain reliability of the general insurance business in Japan, and thus contribute to a secure and safe society.
To this end, the GIAJ now focuses on the following five pillars of activities:

(1) Enhancement of Communication with Consumers
(2) Improvement of the Quality of Business Processes and Customer Inter-relations
(3) Development of the Business Infrastructure, and Requests and Proposals
(4) Contribution to Safety and Security in Society and the Community
(5) Contribution to the Global Community