U.S. life insurance application activity Year-over-Year (YOY) was flat at -0.6% in July 2023. When comparing July 2023 to the same month in prior years, activity was down -8.3% compared to 2021, down -13.6% compared to 2020, and down -1.6% compared to 2019. However, on a Year-to-Date (YTD) basis, activity through July 2023 was up +3.6% compared to July 2022, down -2.9% compared to 2021, up +2.3% compared to 2020, and up +5.4% compared to 2019.

When looking at age bands, July 2023 saw YOY growth for ages 31-50, flat activity for ages 0-30, and declines for all other ages, with ages 0-30 up +0.9%, ages 31-50 up +3.3%, ages 51-60 down -4.4%, ages 61-70 down -7.9%, and ages 71+ down -6.0%.

When examining YOY activity by face amount, declining activity was seen for amounts up to and including $250K, and all other face amounts saw growth, in the double digits for amounts over $500K. When including age bands, ages 0-30 saw flat activity for amounts up to and including $250K, and growth for all other face amounts, with double-digit growth for amounts over $250K up to and including $500K as well as amounts over $1M. Ages 31-50 saw declines for amounts up to and including $250K, and growth for all other face amounts, in the double digits for amounts over $500K. Ages 51-60 saw double-digit declines for amounts up to and including $250K, and growth for all other face amounts, in the double digits for amounts over $250K up to and including $500K as well as amounts over $1M. Ages 61-70 saw double-digit declines for amounts up to and including $250K, and double-digit growth for all other face amounts. Ages 71+ saw growth for amounts over $250K up to and including $5M, in the double digits for amounts over $250K up to and including $2.5M and declines for all other face amounts.

July 2023 saw YOY declines for Term Life, growth for Universal Life, and flat activity for Whole Life. Specifically, Term Life was down -1.7%, Universal Life was up +5.5%, and Whole Life flat at +0.6%. Worthy of noting, Universal Life has seen continuous YOY growth since November 2022.

When examining activity by product type and age band, Term Life saw growth for ages 0-30, flat activity for ages 31-50, and declines for ages 51+, in the double digits for ages 61+. Universal Life saw growth for ages 0-50, in the double digits for ages 31-50, flat activity for ages 51-60, and declines for ages 61+. Whole Life saw declines for ages 51-70, in the double digits for ages 51-60, and growth for all other age bands.