Skip to main content
The Actuary: The magazine of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries - return to the homepage Logo of The Actuary website
  • Search
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on LinkedIn
  • Visit @TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Visit the website of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries Logo of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries

Main navigation

  • News
  • Features
    • General Features
    • Interviews
    • Students
    • Opinion
  • Topics
  • Knowledge
    • Business Skills
    • Careers
    • Events
    • Predictions by The Actuary
    • Whitepapers
    • Moody's - Climate Risk Insurers series
    • Webinars
    • Podcasts
  • Jobs
  • IFoA
    • CEO Comment
    • IFoA News
    • People & Social News
    • President Comment
  • Archive
Quick links:
  • Home
  • Sections
  • News

Highest death rate increase recorded since Great Depression

Open-access content Wednesday 13th January 2021 — updated 5.38am, Thursday 14th January 2021
Highest death rate increase recorded since Great Depression

The annual increase in deaths across England and Wales in 2020 was higher than in any year since the Great Depression, the Continuous Mortality Investigation (CMI) has revealed.

The CMI's latest mortality update – based on figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) – shows that there were 13.4% more deaths last year than during the previous 12 months, which is the highest increase since 1929.

Mortality rates were 7% higher between 19 December 2020 and 1 January 2021 (weeks 52 and 53) than during the corresponding period for 2019. The increase was also 7% in week 51, and 8% in week 50.

The number of deaths with COVID-19 mentioned on the death certificate increased from 2,912 in week 52, to 3,144 in week 53

Overall, the CMI estimates that there were around 72,900 more deaths in the UK between the start of the pandemic and 1 January 2021, than there were during the same weeks of 2019, of which 12,100 occurred in the second wave.

“The coronavirus pandemic has led to death rates in 2020 being 13% higher than in 2019,” Cobus Daneel, chair of the CMI Mortality Projections Committee. “This is by far the highest annual increase in recent years, and the largest annual increase since 1929.

“While recent excess deaths figures are hard to interpret due to bank holidays, all indications are that we continue to see material excess deaths.”

Owned by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, the CMI has been publishing analysis of the UK's mortality rate during the coronavirus crisis through its mortality monitor.

This week’s monitor contains additional analysis comparing measures of excess deaths that use different benchmarks.

It shows that the widely-used comparison for average deaths in recent years exaggerates excess deaths during the pandemic by nearly 15,000, compared to the CMI method, which allows for a growing and ageing population.

This comes after the CMI revealed last month that it would place no weight on 2020 data when it releases its next model for projecting UK mortality rates due to the impact of COVID-19.

It intends to publish its next mortality monitor for week 1 of 2021 on Tuesday 19 January 2021. 


Image credit: iStock
Author: Chris Seekings

Also filed in
News
Topics
Health care

You might also like...

Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

Life Actuarial Trainee

England
Up to £55000.00 per annum
Reference
145815

Catastrophe Manager - Top Performing Syndicate

England, London
£70000 - £94000 per annum
Reference
145814

Senior Pricing Analyst

London, England
£40000 - £80000 per annum
Reference
145813
See all jobs »
 
 

Today's top reads

 
 

Sign up to our newsletter

News, jobs and updates

Sign up

Subscribe to The Actuary

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
Spread-iPad-slantB-june.png

Topics

  • Data Science
  • Investment
  • Risk & ERM
  • Pensions
  • Environment
  • Soft skills
  • General Insurance
  • Regulation Standards
  • Health care
  • Technology
  • Reinsurance
  • Global
  • Life insurance
​
FOLLOW US
The Actuary on LinkedIn
@TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Facebook: The Actuary Magazine
CONTACT US
The Actuary
Tel: (+44) 020 7880 6200
​

IFoA

About IFoA
Become an actuary
IFoA Events
About membership

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Think Green

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to The Actuary Magazine
Contribute

The Actuary Jobs

Actuarial job search
Pensions jobs
General insurance jobs
Solvency II jobs

© 2023 The Actuary. The Actuary is published on behalf of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries by Redactive Publishing Limited. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ