John Hancock seeks LTCI growth

John Hancock Insurance is working to promote sales of its one-year-old Performance LTC long-term care insurance (LTCI) product.

The company is offering a 10 percent producer bonus on applications signed by Dec. 31, 2016, and placed by Feb. 28, 2017.

See also: John Hancock hires LTCI sales executive

The bonus is available only where allowed by law. It’s not available with policies written in Delaware, Michigan or Pennsylvania for consumers ages 65 or older, and it’s not available with policy replacement sales in six other states.

The bonus program is noteworthy because, in the past, John Hancock executives have described U.S. LTCI sales as not being targeted for growth.

John Hancock has used a new LTCI policy feature, a flex account, to make the product family resistant to the current low interest rate environment. The feature ties a portion of the performance of the product to changes in interest rates.

If rates increase from the current rock-bottom levels, interest earnings will help reduce the cost of the LTCI premiums. If rates rise high enough, interest earnings will increase the amount of benefits available.