Braintree, MA. – (October 14, 2008) – North American application activity for individually underwritten life insurance was down -3.8% in September year-over-year, according to the MIB Life Indexsm. Year to date (YTD) U.S. and Canadian activity was off -1.9%, compared to the same nine months last year. Consistent with seasonal trends, application activity in September increased sharply compared to the prior August, up +8.6%.
U.S. application activity declined -4.4% in September year-over-year, all ages combined. Age groups 0-44 and 45-59 were off -6.5% and -3.7%, respectively versus last September. The 60+ age group extended its 18 month growth streak, up +5.0%. At the close of September, YTD U.S. application activity was off -2.4%, compared to the same nine months last year.
Canadian application activity was flat in September up +0.5% year-over-year, all ages combined. Activity by age group followed suit, except in ages 60+: 0-44 (+0.6%), 45-59 (0.0%) and 60+ (+1.1%) year-over-year. Year to date, Canadian application activity remains positive heading into the fourth quarter of 2008, up +1.9% compared to the same nine months last year.
| Monthly Percent Change vs. 2007* | |||
| U.S. | Canada | Total | |
| September 2008 | -4.4% | +0.5% | -3.8% |
| August 2008 | -2.0% | -1.2% | -1.9% |
| YTD 2008 | -2.4% | +1.9% | -1.9% |
| Monthly Percent Change vs. Previous Month | |||
| U.S. | Canada | Total | |
| September 2008 | +8.1% | +11.2% | +8.6% |
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.
