Manulife Financial is the leader inproviding Canadians with statements to help them understand their universal life insurance plans, according to an industry survey by DALBAR Inc.

Manulife universal life statement was the only one designated as “Excellent” in a cross-country review of five industry statements that explain Canadians’ universal life insurance policies.

Manulife’s Universal Life statement scored 81.29 compared to an industry average of 68.1, Dalbar says. Standard Life’s statement earned a “Very Good” designation, with a score of 70.47.

“Dalbar congratulates Manulife, which earned the industry-leading ‘Excellent’ designation,” says Jody Bullen, director of strategy and public relations for Dalbar Inc. in Toronto. “Its statement stood out for its clear presentation of information, as well as providing the investor with critical updates and issues concerning their investments.”

“This is the second time that we’ve received Dalbar’s top rating for our universal life statements. It confirms our belief that our statements lead the industry as an important tool for helping clients understand their policy and get the maximum benefit from it,” says Michael Doughty, executive vp, individual insurance for Manulife. “These statements give our clients a customized picture of their policy so they can work with their advisor to manage the policy, gauge their progress and explore opportunities.”

The universal life policyholder statement analysis examined statements from five Canadian insurance companies and used Dalbar’s criteria to assign each a score out of 100.

The ranked universal life statements for 2009 are:

> Manulife Finanial;
> Standard Life;
> Sun Life Financial;
> Desjardins; and
> Transamerica.

Dalbar is a financial services research firm with offices in Toronto and Boston and the UK.

IE