Q3 Activity off 2.6% from 2009 Levels
Braintree, MA. � (October 18, 2010) U.S. application activity for individually underwritten life insurance declined -2.0% in September year-over-year, all ages combined, according to the MIB Life Indexsm.. Activity for the third quarter declined by -2.6% when compared against the same quarter 2009. The growth burst in application activity from September �09 through January �10 has waned over the subsequent 8 months — from January�s year-to-date (YTD) high of +1.2%, falling to -1.0% YTD by September�s end. For the month, September�s activity was up +9.7% over August, a jump typically seen in this time period.
The U.S. MIB Life Index by age group for September showed ages 0-44, off -5.5%; ages 45-59, flat at -0.2%; and ages 60+, up +8.7% year-over-year. In the middle age market (45-59), this is the second consecutive month of flat activity in a year peppered by gains and losses. Growth in the 60 + age group has tempered from double-digits in May, posting in single digit growth for the last four consecutive months.
| U.S. Monthly Percent Change vs. 2009 | |||
| U.S. | |||
| Sept. 2010 | -2.0% | ||
| Aug. 2010 | -1.8% | ||
| YTD 2010 | -1.0% | ||
| Q1 2010/Q1 2009 | +1.3% | ||
| Q2 2010/Q2 2009 | -1.8% | ||
| Q3 2010/Q3 2009 | -2.6% | ||
| U.S. Monthly Percent Change by Age (year-over-year) |
|||
| Sep. ‘10 | Aug. ‘10 | Jul. ‘10 | |
| 0 – 44 | -5.5% | -5.2% | -7.4% |
| 45 – 59 | -0.2% | -0.5% | -2.8% |
| 60 + | +8.7% | +8.9% | +7.0% |
| U.S. Monthly Percent Change vs. Prior Month | ||
| Sept. 2010 | +9.7% | |
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.
