Life insurers have taken many "special charges" in recent years in connection with changes in the assumptions they use to set rates for products such as long-term care insurance and annuity benefits guarantees.
John Nadel, a securities analyst at Credit Suisse, said Wednesday in New York that he wished he had a lot more information about the overall size and nature of life insurers' assumption-related risk, not just about the assumption changes that lead to the special charges announced in insurers' quarterly earnings releases.
Nadel talked about the assumption risk issue during a session on life insurance sector tends, at an S&P Global Ratings insurance conference.
Nadel noted that past interest rate assumptions could have a big effect on long-term care insurance issuers.
