The hunt for unit-linked fees has only just begun. According to the latest figures published by France Assureurs, units of account (UC) gave an average return of 2.08% during the year 2022. A performance slightly better than the euro-denominated fund, which gave an average return of 2% over the same period.
Unit-linked products gave a negative return of -11.2% in the period (excluding unit-linked contract fees and deducted current fund costs), whereas the return reached 10% a year earlier. A bad patch due to negative returns recorded on the equity segments (-7.4%) and asset allocation funds (-3.7%), but also bond products (-1.2%).
However, if the underperformance recorded in 2022 can be explained by the downturn in the financial markets and the rise in interest rates, these are not the only reasons. The fees applied for years to this type of support also affect performance. On this subject, the Prudential Supervisory and Resolution Authority (ACPR) announced a little earlier this year that it was embarking on a “chasing fees on poorly performing unit-linked productss”, quickly followed by proposals from France Assureurs, who want to guarantee “better transparency combined with a moderation of unit-linked costs in life insurance”.
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In this regard, the share of current fund costs in 2022 is 1.57% on average weighted by assets, according to the federal report. Average management fees on outstanding contracts are estimated at 0.79% on average. In detail and in terms of market distribution, these costs are higher than 0.95% for 10% of outstanding. They are around 0.83% for 50% of them and reach 0.66% for only 10% of the market.
France Assureurs does not differentiate between the different management methods, although the fees applied vary according to the latter. In 2023, the fees of UCs in flexible management will average 2.13% and for profiled management they will reach an average of 1.85%, according to the company Facts & Figures specializing in strategy and management in the insurance sector.
An unbroken trend
In the race to cash in, life insurance companies have not hesitated in recent years to promote the distribution of billing units. And this despite the decline in the markets after the health crisis and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Thus, the French unit-link life insurance market ended the year with a premium level of 57.9 billion euros, i.e. a stable amount over a year and twice as high as in 2016.
But the trend should not change, according to Cyrille Chartier-Kastler, president of Facts & Figures: “Collecting on CPUs will not slow down. The return of the fund in euros is significantly lower than inflation. Investors will continue to invest in shares to capture performance to combat inflation“.
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In 2022, transfers of euro funds to CUs were positive for an amount of 7.4 billion euros. “Life insurance today is mostly about wealth savers who, in my opinion, can gain by identifying a high performing UC in the market and bet hard on it.“. Billing units now account for nearly 40% of the premiums that insurance companies receive each year.
