Individual Life Sales Show Mixed Results

By Staff Writer

June 03, 2008 at 10:38 PM

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Solid universal life production helped U.S. individual life sellers increase new annualized premiums 1% between the first quarter of 2007 and the first quarter of 2008.

Researchers at LIMRA International, Windsor, Conn., have based that figure on results from a survey of 78 insurers.

LIMRA is publishing percentage change statistics but is not publishing the dollar value of individual life sales.

UL insurance accounts for about 42% individual life sales, and premium volume for that product was up 8% during the first quarter, LIMRA says.

New annualized premium levels were down 1% for whole life, 3% for term life, 6% for variable universal life, and 26% for variable life, LIMRA says.

The total value of coverage purchased was about the same in the first quarters of 2007 and 2008.

The value of the death benefits sold was up 3% for whole life and 6% for universal life, but the face amount of the death benefits was down 1% for term life, 5% for VUL policies, and 18% for VL policies.

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