MIB index reveals decline in app activity in February

Applications for individually underwritten life insurance declined for the second consecutive month in February, according to new research.

MIB Group Inc., Braintree, Mass., discloses this finding in the March release of its MIB Life Index, a monthly measure of application activity in the U.S. The index is based on the number of searches MIB life member company underwriters perform on the MIB Checking Service database.

The index indicates that application activity for individually underwritten life insurance fell 4.5 percent in February (year-over-year). The dip follows a year-over-year 2.3 percent decline in January, yielding a year-to-date decline of 3.5 percent.

The year-over-year U.S. monthly percentage changes in February by age group were as follows:

0-44: -3.9 percent

  45-59: -6.2 percent

60-plus: -3.3 percent