Singapore: Life insurance sector new business premiums decline 2% y-o-y to S$1.21 billion in 1Q2022

Singapore’s life insurance sector recorded a total of S$1.21 billion in weighted new business premiums for the period January 2022 to March 2022, a dip of 2% compared to a year ago.

Here’s a list of three noteworthy figures revealed by the Life Insurance Association, Singapore (LIA Singapore).

1. S$2.29 billion paid out to policyholders and beneficiaries

Between 1 January 2022 and 31 March 2022, the life insurance industry paid out S$2.29 billion to policyholders and beneficiaries.

Of this amount, S$1.92 billion was for policies that matured.

S$364 million was paid out for death, critical illness or disability claims.

2. Significant growth in the number of policies purchased online

The number of new policies purchased online significantly surged 242% to 214,372 in 1Q2022 compared to 88,565 in 1Q2021. It now accounts for 45%of the distribution channel breakdown by the number of policies.

These are purchases transacted online by customers without financial advisory.

Specifically, micro-insurance products sold by an insurer had contributed to the large increase in the policy count observed.

These online purchases totalled S$27 million in weighted premiums, accounting for 2% of the total weighted premiums for 1Q2022.

3. Significant uptake of single-premium products

Single-premium products recorded a 21% year-on-year increase in weighted premiums amounting to S$655.4 million in total for 1Q2022.

a. Single-premium par and non-par products comprised 88% of all single-premium purchases; single-premium linked products made up the remaining 12%.

b. CPFIS-included products comprised 4%; and cash-funded products accounted for the remaining 96%.

Check out these personal finance content, too: