Eastbridge's annual U.S. Worksite Sales Report for 2010 was recently released and, according to the findings, sales for the year were down compared to 2009. This is the first time since we have been tracking voluntary/worksite sales that we have seen a decrease from the prior year's results.

In this column, we will share some details on the overall sales results for 2010. Future columns will provide details by product line and by distribution channel. According to surveys completed by carriers, new voluntary sales (U.S.) totaled an estimated $5.243 billion, down from $5.397 billion in 2009.

This represents a decrease of 2.85 percent. As you can see on the graph, this is the first decrease in voluntary sales year over year since we've been tracking sales. Undoubtedly, the economy and unemployment were major causes of the lower results. Interestingly, despite the overall decrease, more companies experienced increases than decreases in 2010.