Month-over-month, Canadian life insurance application activity was notably positive, but Canadian life insurance application activity declined slightly year-over-year during the month of February, according to the most recent MIB Life Index, published by Massachusetts-based, MIB Group Inc.
Application activity declined slightly in February, with year-over-year activity down 1.9 per cent, according to the index. On a monthly basis, however, the trend was positive: February activity in 2021 was up 15.9 per cent relative to January 2021 numbers. Year-to-date activity, though, was down 4.3 per cent in February 2021, compared with numbers posted in February 2020.
Declining year-over-year numbers were dragged lower by application activity in the 51 to age 70 group, which was down 7.1 per cent, year-over-year. Application activity for those 61 and 70 years of age also fell 5.2 per cent. All other age groups had relatively flat activity in February, year-over-year.
MIB adds that the composite year-over-year decline in February was largely driven by lower face amounts.
“When examining activity patterns where a product type was submitted to MIB, we see declines in term life of 4.8 per cent in favour of strong increases in universal life – up 37.8 per cent – and whole life which was up 14.3 per cent,” observed MIB. “Term life dropped for all age groups, with the exception of ages 31 to 50 where activity was flat. Universal life saw significant growth in ages 0 to 50, declined slightly for the 61 to 70 age group, and was relatively flat for other age groups. Whole life grew for all age groups, in the double digits for ages 0 to 50 and for those 71+.”
