Description: Mandatory implementation of life principle-based reserves (PBR) is just around the corner, and there is no shortage of work to do, as most products have yet to be moved to PBR. Oliver Wyman recently completed its 2019 PBR survey, with more than 40 participants covering 85 percent of the individual life market, including 23 of the top 25 life writers and five reinsurers. This article will expand on the key survey findings including implementation status and model simplifications.

Description: The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been discussed widely and in depth, with lockdown measures and restrictions on travel and trading having a severe impact on the global economy. It is therefore essential the insurance industry investigates these changes in the economy in terms of their impact on morbidity and mortality. In this article, we highlight some of the key findings on this topic.

Description: Read the October 2019 issue of Product Matters! published by the Product Development Section. Newsletters provide practical information for the working actuary, articles on trends that impact sections and news about section activities.

Description: Future mortality improvement has been a common assumption in life insurance and annuity pricing and forecasting for many years. However, experience over the last decade suggests this might be an assumption that merits reconsideration in the United States. This article will take a closer look at factors that impact mortality improvement trends and discuss why insurers may want to reevaluate product designs to better manage the associated mortality risk. We then introduce a product idea with this in mind, where premiums are based on a life expectancy index and insurers share the risk (and opportunity) or mortality improvement with policyholders.

Description: A nationally recognized market research firm recently conducted a consumer survey pertaining to income term life insurance. Income term life insurance offers a death benefit which includes an upfront-specified income stream, commencing upon death of the insured during the term period, to a surviving beneficiary until (a) a predefined date or (b) death of the beneficiary. This article provides an overview of the results of the survey.

Description: Table of contents for Volume 1, Issue No. 2 of The Record of the Society of Actuaries. These records were taken from the New York meeting, April 17-18, 1975.

Description: This article discusses the implications of a groundbreaking test that can help people determine how long they have left to live.

Description: Against a background of recent capital market downturns, this article discusses the need for increasing the focus on risk control with respect to variable annuity and life products. This article originally appeared in the September 14, 1998 issue of The National Underwriter, a publication of the National Underwriter Company, and is reprinted here with permission.

Description: A brief overview of the rules for corporate owned life insurance in section 101j and then summarizes the guidance contained in the IRS notice.

Description: Read the February 2020 issue of Product Matters! published by the Product Development Section. Newsletters provide practical information for the working actuary, articles on trends that impact sections and news about section activities.