4 ID Trends NAILBA

The driving force behind innovation in underwriting and sales is technology and data . The abundance of data and the efficiencies created by digital technology continue to propel the insurance and financial services business forward . But are we maximizing the benefits of this digital age ?

Pam Sheehan Senior Director , Strategic Partnerships & Media Initiatives NAILBA PSheehan @ nailba . org

LIMRA 2021 Insurance Barometer report suggests we are trending in the right direction . Whether gently being nudged along by consumer needs or being pandemically pushed , our industry is embracing more e-services , hybrid products , and rightsourcing ... creating a strong fiscal story in 2021 .

The following pages provide a snapshot of the trends within the independent distribution channel . Further details and conversations around these topics are being shared during NAILBA ’ s virtual summer symposium , Cracking the Code , on June 22 and 24 . Thanks to our sponsors — American National , Formstack , Insurance Technologies , Legal & General , LexisNexis Risk Solutions , Lincoln Financial Services , Prudential , Simplicity Group , and Techficient — the two half-day events and on-demand recordings are free to insurance professionals .

Digital advancements are positively impacting all aspects of our business , including NAILBA ’ s ID Trends bi-annual report . Taking a page from the Digital Age playbook , this summer ID Trends is only being distributed digitally to our 410,000 readers . Housed on a new digital platform , the publication can be easily searched with options for downloading and printing , as well as back issues of both Perspectives and ID Trends being indexed and searchable .

Time for all of us to embrace the technology and support the advancement of the independent distribution community .

All the best !

Trends in sales and underwriting

LIMRA 2021 Insurance Barometer report provides insight into the average American consumer and their use of financial products . We are pleased to provide the following charts and graphs from LIMRA along with updates on the use of simplified underwriting , market penetration trends by product and demographics .

Some key takeaways from the recent report : 24 % of the 13 % who obtained life insurance for the first time were Millennials Employers continue to see life insurance as a key benefit to their employees with 37 % of employers paying the entire cost , 29 % paying basic only , and 32 % offering little or no financial assistance toward the cost .

For those who foot the bill for their own insurance not tied to employment , 34 % own term only while 48 % own permanent only and 18 % own both . The pursuit of a financial advisor has remained steady since 2019 with one person in four indicating they are seeking a financial advisor . This is an 11 % increase over 2018 . 62 % of individuals surveyed rate reading other people ’ s opinions on agents as important , 20 % higher than discussing financial concerns with a professional .