Braintree, MA. — (May 16, 2008) North American application activity for individually underwritten life insurance was off -4.5% in April, year-over-year, according to the MIB Life Indexsm. Year-to-date (YTD) U.S. and Canadian application activity was off -2.1% compared to the same period last year. April’s activity was off -6.6% when compared to last March.
U.S. application activity was down -5.1% in April year-over-year, all ages combined. Age groups 0-44 and 45-59 declined -7.3% and -4.1%, respectively versus April 2007. Continuing a one year plus growth trend, the 60+ age group was up +4.3% year-over-year. YTD, the 60+ is the only age group exhibiting growth, up +5.8% compared to the same four month period last year. YTD, U.S. application activity was off -2.9%, all ages combined.
Canadian application activity was flat for the second consecutive month, off -0.3% year-over-year, all ages combined. By age group, ages 0-44 were up +1.9%, while ages 45-59 and 60+ were off -4.1% and -2.9%, respectively year-over-year. YTD, age group trends are the inverse of those in the U.S. — growth in the 0-44 and 45-59 age groups, up +5.8% and +3.1%, respectively and flat (-0.3%) ages 60+ versus the same four month period last year. YTD, Canadian application activity was up +4.5% all ages combined.
| Monthly Percent Change vs. 2007* | |||
| U.S. | Canada | Total | |
| April 2008 | -5.1% | -0.3% | -4.5% |
| March 2008 | -0.8% | +0.2% | -0.7% |
| YTD 2008 | -2.9% | +4.5% | -2.1% |
| Monthly Percent Change vs. Previous Month | |||
| U.S. | Canada | Total | |
| April 2008 | -7.9% | +2.9% | -6.6% |
*March, April and YTD 2008 percentages have been adjusted to reflect a Canadian reporting anomaly for the period January-June 2007.
About the MIB Life Index
The MIB Life Index is the life insurance industry’s timeliest measure of application activity across the U.S. Released to the media each month, the Index is based on the number of searches life member company underwriters perform on the MIB Checking Service database. Since the vast majority of individually underwritten life premium dollars in North America include an MIB search as a routine underwriting requirement, the MIB Life Index provides a reasonable means to estimate new business activity.
About MIB
MIB is the life and health insurance industry’s most trusted resource for risk information and analytical services. Owned by the industry it has served for more than a century, MIB is uniquely positioned to aggregate industry insights in order to develop products and services for our members that improve their risk management decisions. MIB, Inc. and MIB Solutions, Inc. are wholly-owned subsidiaries of the MIB Group, Inc. Visit www.mib.com.
