Worksite LTCi: Roundup of Facts/Figures
Opinion, perspective and experience can be worth their weight in gold. Nevertheless, there’s always something to be said for cold, hard, figures! So, when I read the article “2013 Analysis of Worksite LTC Insurance” in the August issue of Broker World magazine, I decided to pass along some of the findings I found most relevant.
Worksite long term care insurance (LTCi) consists of multi-life sales made to groups of people having an employer in common. The insurance products used can be either group policies with individual certificates, or individual policies (for ease of reading both forms will be referred to as policies in this article). Very large employer true group LTCi is not included in this analysis.
All figures and analysis correspond to insurance policies purchased in calendar year 2012. Here’s what I found most interesting:
AVERAGE PURCHASE AGE – The average age of a worksite purchaser is 50, while non-worksite is 57.
POLICY BENEFIT PERIODS – Most policies — whether worksite or not — are purchased with between a 3 year and 6 year benefit period. That’s true for 68% of worksite, and 66% of non-worksite.
NUMBER OF POLICIES PER WORKSITE – The average number of policies issued per worksite case, as reported by insurers, differed widely. The range of averages went from a low of 19 to a high of 140. The average number of policies is likely inflated, since insurers may not categorize some policies as worksite that actually are. For example, if two business partners and their spouses purchase LTCi using the business checkbook, most people would consider that a worksite sale. However, without a discount or underwriting concession, some insurers would not include those 4 policies in their worksite statistics.
BENEFIT INCREASE FEATURE – Although similar percentages of purchasers buy benefit increase features (sometimes called built-in inflation protection) in worksite and non-worksite, significantly more worksite purchasers bought a lower interest rate on their increases. Thirty-two percent purchased a 3% compound increase, while twenty percent purchased a 5% compound. These figures were essentially flip-flopped for non-worksite purchasers (34% bought 5 percent; 22% bought 3 percent). Further, 11% of worksite policy purchasers had no benefit increase on their policies, compared to only 9.8% of non-worksite purchasers.
OTHER POINTS OF INTEREST
There are fewer carriers in the worksite market than in the individual market.
Underwriting requirements have become more stringent for worksite LTCi.
As gender-distinct rates become the norm on the individual market, worksite’s gender-neutral pricing becomes more or less competitive, depending on the ratio of male/female ratio employees with an interest in LTCi.
IN SUMMARY
Worksite LTCi offerings are a fast-growing and fast-changing segment of the LTCi market. Don’t hesitate to call me to request a copy of this full analysis, or with any questions related to worksite or non-worksite long term care insurance.