Insurance Policy, Life; Health, car, travel, for background
Total new life annualized premiums set a record of $15.9 billion last year, according to LIMRA’s retail life insurance sales survey. This marked the fourth consecutive year of record premiums.
“Independent distribution continues to drive the record sales in the U.S. market,” said John Carroll, senior vice president and head of annuities for LIMRA and LOMA. “This channel represented 6 in 10 dollars sold in 2024, up from half of new premium sold just five years ago, and represented over 90% of the record indexed universal life sales in 2024.”
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The survey identified sales trends by product category.
Indexed universal life set new quarterly and annual sales records. New premiums increased 10% to $1.15 billion in the fourth quarter. New premiums totaled a record-high $3.8 billion in 2024, up 4% from the previous year, while policy count grew 10% year over year. New indexed universal life premiums represented 24% of the total U.S. life insurance market last year.
“As middle-income and mass affluent consumers look for new investment tools to help them save for retirement, the indexed universal market has shifted,” Carroll said. “We see more smaller and simplified policies sold to consumers seeking investment protection in a volatile equity market.”
Variable universal life new premiums rose by 37% to $741 million in the fourth quarter, while the number of policies sold increased 10% in the quarter. For the year, new premium sales were $2.2 billion, up 15% year over year, and policy count improved by 6%.
Fixed universal life new premiums dropped 1% in the fourth quarter to $275 million. The policy count fell 13% from fourth quarter 2023 results. For the year, fixed new premiums were $1.1 billion, 7% higher than the previous year’s results, while policy count fell by 12%.
Whole life. Following three consecutive quarters of decline, whole life sales rebounded in the fourth quarter. New annualized premiums totaled $1.6 billion in the quarter, which was 3% above the previous year’s results. The number of whole life policies sold increased by 3% in the quarter.
“Final expense and other smaller-face whole life policies drove the overall growth in the fourth quarter,” said Karen Terry, assistant vice president and head of insurance product research for LIMRA. “Historically, interest rate cuts and increased market volatility bolster whole life sales, and we expect this trend to continue in 2025.”
Term life. Term life new premiums totaled $749 million, down 1% from a year earlier. The policy count also fell by 1% in the fourth quarter. For the year, new premiums topped $3 billion, up 1% compared with 2023 results. The number of policies sold increased slightly and was up by 1%.
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Alan Goforth
Alan Goforth is a freelance writer in suburban Kansas City. In addition to freelancing for several publications, he has written a dozen books about sports and other topics.
