Annual statement review is the practice of systematically examining a clientTMs life insurance and annuity statements each year to monitor performance, verify assumptions, and assess whether coverage still aligns with planning goals. Reviews typically focus on premiums paid, cash values, credited interest or index performance, policy charges, dividends, loan activity, and projected policy duration. For term policies, the review may address remaining level premium period and conversion options. Regular annual statement reviews help identify underperforming policies, emerging funding gaps, and opportunities to optimize coverage before problems become difficult or impossible to correct, such as policies approaching lapse or term conversion deadlines.

Advisors build annual statement review into their service model, requesting in-force illustrations and recent statements from carriers, then meeting with clients to walk through findings. They may uncover underfunded UL policies, underperforming variable subaccounts, or outdated beneficiary designations. When issues arise, advisors propose corrective actions such as premium adjustments, face amount changes, product exchanges, or replacements when appropriate. Annual statement reviews also create natural touchpoints to discuss life changes, new goals, and related planning needs like LTC or retirement income. Understanding annual statement review allows advisors to move from one-time product sales to ongoing policy management, improving client outcomes and strengthening long-term relationships.