Whole life insurance has been expanding its share of new sales year after year since 2007. Universal life insurance has lost ground steadily during this period. These trends were reported in a LIMRA study on the evolution of life insurance sales in Canada from 1995 to 2013.Universal life accounted for 23% of new life insurance sales in Canada in 2013. Whole life insurance captured 47% and term insurance 30%. Universal life virtually sank back to its 1995 status, at 21%.

The share of universal life insurance sales peaked in 2000, at 52%. In 2007, UL began a steady drop from 44%. That same year, whole life insurance entered a long upswing. The highest share whole life posted during the period examined was 53%, in 1995.

The share of term insurance remained fairly stable since 1995, going from 26% to 30%. Term insurance reached its summit of 33% in 2009.

Lingering trend

“Since the first quarter of last year UL has dropped four percentage points of premium market share, now representing just over one-fifth of total new premiums. Term sales saw a two percentage point drop in both their premium market shares, now representing 28,” survey director Rob Kanehl points out.

“WL gained where the other products lost, picking up six percentage points of premium market share,” Kanehl explains. He adds that through the end of March, WL represented more than half of total new life insurance premiums in Canada.