Policyholders Who Sold Their Life Insurance Received Nearly
9x More Than Insurers Offered in 2025
Five years of life settlement market data shows $3.6 billion paid to policyholders since 2021
WASHINGTON, DC — May 19, 2026 – The Life Insurance Settlement Association (LISA) today released its 2025 annual market data, showing that consumers who sold their life insurance policies through a LISA member received nearly nine times their cash surrender value – almost 900% more than they would have received by surrendering the policy to their insurance company. In practical terms, the average policyholder who surrendered a policy received $24,360, compared to the average payout of $212,066 for consumers who sold their policies on the secondary market through a life settlement.
The findings come as the average cash surrender value offered by insurers declined 27% year-over-year, falling from $33,493 in 2024 to just $24,360 in 2025. At the same time, the secondary market continued to deliver significantly greater value to policyholders who chose to sell policies they no longer needed.
2025 Data Highlights:
- $626.6 million paid to consumers by LISA members for policies they no longer needed
- 2,955 completed transactions — a 9.48% increase over 2024
- Consumers received nearly 9x the cash surrender value — up from just under 7x in 2024
- $554.6 million more returned to policyholders than they would have received by surrendering to their insurer
“The 2025 data tells a clear story: the life settlement market is delivering real, measurable value for consumers at a time when insurance companies are offering less and less,” said Bryan Nicholson, executive director of LISA. “As cash surrender values decline, consumers deserve to understand all of the options available to them before making decisions about a valuable and too often overlooked financial asset.”
The 2025 release marks five years of comprehensive market data collected by LISA. From 2021 through 2025, LISA members paid consumers $3.6 billion for policies they no longer needed, approximately $3 billion more than those same policyholders would have received by surrendering their coverage to insurers.
Nearly 15,000 policies were settled over that period, reflecting a mature, regulated industry with a consistent and documented track record of delivering meaningful value to policyholders.
“As retirement costs rise and financial priorities evolve, more consumers are looking closely at the assets they already own and evaluating how those assets fit into their broader financial picture,” said Rob Haynie, chair of LISA. “For many policyholders, understanding that a secondary market exists for life insurance policies can open the door to options they may not have realized were available.”
Despite the scale and maturity of the market, awareness of life settlements remains relatively low among consumers. LISA and its members remain committed to closing that awareness gap through industry education, regulatory engagement, and outreach to the financial professionals who help guide policyholders through major financial decisions.
Media Contact:
LISA@clyde.us
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