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All News and insights

All the latest information, news and research from the Club Vita team.

General interest | VitaMins

VitaMins Health: Air Pollution - a major mortality driver or just a lot of hot air?

Health behaviours and levels of morbidity are key drivers for future mortality rates and can be thought of as key components of the “longevity pipeline”. The levels of health and morbidity in a population today will be stored up and reflected in how long people live in the future.

15 May 2018

General interest | Top charts

Top Charts 18-05: What does the Sκ parameter actually mean?

In this regular column, Club Vita's longevity experts will help you visualise the often abstract world of longevity risk by introducing their own personal favourite charts. In this edition Longevity Risk Consultant, Nick Chadwick, shares a way of visually comparing the impact of the Sκ parameter on mortality projections.

2 May 2018

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Club Vita Canada - Key Factors for Explaining Differences in Canadian Pensioner Baseline Mortality

Research paper on the initial results on longevity predictors conducted using Club Vita Canada’s data set

1 May 2018

Business updates | Press releases

JLT adopts Club Vita's longevity analytics through RiskFirst's PFaroe

JLT has become the first actuarial consultancy to implement Club Vita’s longevity analytics capabilities through RiskFirst’s PFaroe modelling system for defined benefit pension plans. This integrated capability will enable JLT’s defined benefit clients to conveniently set best-estimate longevity assumptions, and strengthen their decision-making.

25 April 2018

Opinion & experiences | Personal blogs

The case for longevity "time zones"

The evidence of diversity in life expectancy is overwhelming, and the uncertain timing of future medical breakthroughs increase demand for insurance. But, the resources required - risk capital and actuarial skills - are limited. So how do you meet demand in the most efficient way? Douglas Anderson, Founder of Club Vita discusses.

16 April 2018

General interest | Top charts

Top Charts 18-04: The Bee-Swarm Chart - Illustrating Diversity

In the third issue of Top Charts Membership Secretary, Steve Hood, shows a chart that illustrates why it is important to capture and use all available information when setting longevity assumptions for pension schemes.

5 April 2018

CMI’s Mortality Projections 2017 model: What’s in store for pension schemes?

We take a closer look at the CMI’s latest projection of lower life expectancies and the impact this will have on scheme liabilities.

16 March 2018

General interest | Top charts

Top Charts 18-02: Deaths in England & Wales Over 2017

In this new regular column, Club Vita’s longevity experts will help you visualise the often abstract world of longevity risk by introducing their own personal favourite charts. In this edition Club Vita's Head of Analytics, Conor O’Reilly shows how weekly deaths in England & Wales over 2017 compare to previous years.

26 February 2018

General interest | Top charts

Top Charts 18-01: Interest rates and longevity risk

In this new regular column, Club Vita’s longevity experts will help you visualise the often abstract world of longevity risk by introducing their own personal favourite charts. In our first edition Erik Pickett shows how longevity risk for pension funds has grown as interest rates have fallen.

19 January 2018

Opinion & experiences | Personal blogs

Lang may yer lums reek!

Douglas Anderson takes a look at what uncertainty 2018 may hold.

29 December 2017

Explainers | Expert response

Today’s healthiest and wealthiest retirees are eight times more likely to live to 100 than the poorest and least healthy

It is projected that the number of centenarians (people who live to 100 years old and beyond) will continue to skyrocket by more than 10 fold over the next 30 years.

23 October 2017

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Longevity Trends: Does one size fit all? Collaborative research with the PLSA

Our second report in collaboration with the PLSA on UK longevity trends.

21 September 2017

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Longevity Report: The NAPF Longevity Model

In collaboration with the NAPF (now the PLSA), we developed and published The Longevity Model in late 2014.

21 September 2017

Research & technical | Press releases

Life expectancy amongst affluent men rising faster than the rest of the UK – Club Vita and the PLSA publish longevity trends report

In our second longevity trends research report, in collaboration with the PLSA, we find that life expectancy of affluent men in the UK is rising faster than any other group.

26 June 2017

General interest | VitaMins

VitaMins Health : Gaming the longevity lottery - the search for the causes of longevity variations

Three recent pieces of research really move on our understanding, taking the lengthy investigation in an unexpected direction and turning the spotlight on social care provision.

22 May 2017

General interest | VitaMins

VitaMins: Longevity turbulence – are higher mortality rates a blip?

The debate raging in actuarial circles is whether the higher mortality levels observed in the national population is a blip or a trend back towards lower rates of improvement. Here at Club Vita we have cautioned against changing course in response to recent data points, and today we are releasing the provisional findings from our own analysis of improvement rates of members of DB pension funds.

30 March 2017

Explainers | Expert response

Club Vita respond to Cridland's Independent Review of State Pension

Retention of the universal State Pension age reflects the narrowing socio-economic longevity gap and is good news for intergenerational fairness, but society needs to make a choice between working longer or a more generous state pension.

23 March 2017

Opinion & experiences | Personal blogs

Opposites attract: the seduction of the life insurer and the pension fund

Pension funds have unusually long time-horizons. Their promises can be 20, 30, 50, even 80 years or more. They’re in the until-death-us-do-part business.

14 February 2017

General interest | VitaMins

Vitamins Health - Accurate longevity assumptions could wipe £25bn off collective UK DB deficit

With rock-bottom interest rates causing pension deficits to swell, trustees and sponsors of defined benefit pension funds need to avoid unnecessary margins in assumptions.

19 January 2017

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Longevity basis risk: A framework for assessing longevity basis risk

For pension funds and insurers seeking to use index-based longevity swaps as a means of protecting against longevity trends a long-standing concern has been their effectiveness.

1 December 2014

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Grieving widows

​This paper highlights the elevated mortality experienced upon bereavement.

10 May 2014

General interest | VitaMins

Vitamins Health: The mystery of the vanishing nonagenarians

The 2011 census revealed 15% fewer men in their nineties in England and Wales than had been projected by rolling forward those aged 80+ from the 2001 census. Why does this matter?

19 March 2013

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

Socio-Geographic Variations in Mortality in a Large Retired UK Population

Working with the Oxford Institute of Ageing we identified that the impact on life expectancy of living in an area of deprivation varies depending where in the country you lived.

1 December 2011

Research & technical | Research & technical notes

What longevity predictors should be allowed for when valuing pension plan liabilities?

The original research paper on longevity predictors conducted using the Club Vita data set.

22 March 2011

Explainers | External publications

Living longer and prospering

Our report in collaboration with the Oxford Institute of Ageing on designing an adequate, sustainable and equitable UK state pension system.

1 January 2011

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