U.S. life insurers' death benefit payments jumped 15.4% last year from COVID-19

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• The COVID-19 pandemic last year primarily sparked U.S. life insurers' benefit payments to soar 15.4% to $90.43B in 2020, citing a release from the American Council of Life Insurers.
• This figure is the highest ever in any single year, and the largest Y/Y increase since the 1918 Influenza Epidemic, the release says.
• Overall, total life insurance coverage reached $20.4T in 2020, with a record $3.3T in life insurance coverage purchased, according to ACLI's 2021 Fact Book. Industry assets also grew 7.7% to $8.2T last year.
• "The data tells a compelling story about the resiliency of life insurers," said Andrew Melnyk, ACLI vice president, research and economist.
• Meanwhile, most life insurers including Brighthouse Financial (BHF -0.8%), Prudential Financial (PRU -0.1%), Lincoln National (LNC -0.2%), Manulife Financial (MFC -1.0%) and Aegon (AEG -1.2%) trade in net negative territory so far on Thursday.
• Towards the end of November, life insurance stocks dipped on initial Omicron fears.