Readers Question: “What is the role of an actuary in a life insurance company?”

Nashua is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, USA. As of the 2000 census, Nashua had a total population of 86,605[1], making it the second largest city in the state after Manchester (pop. 107,007). As of 2005, the population is estimated to be 87,986.[2]

Built around the now-departed textile industry, in recent decades it has been swept up in southern New Hampshire’s economic expansion as part of the Boston region. Nashua was twice named “Best Place to Live in America” in annual surveys by Money magazine. It is the only city to get the No.1 ranking two times—in 1987 and 1997. Nashua is currently ranked #87, as of summer 2006. In 2007, the Morgan Quitno Press ranked Nashua as the 27th safest city in the country.

Answer to Readers Question:

There are two broad roles for actuaries in Life Insurance:

• Designing insurance products and assessin the appropriate premium rates and charges to be applied.
• Financial Management in ensuring the company’s solvency by calculating the estimated value of outstanding liabilities allowing for example for future claims, premiums, maturities, cancellations.