Key Talking Points & Frequently Asked Questions

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1 2012 Dividend Scale Key Talking Points & Frequently Asked Questions Key Talking Points Interest rates are at historic lows contributing to lower dividend rates across the industry Interest rates are only one element of the overall dividend calculation resulting in varied rates. Other factors include mortality, expenses, taxes, and policy persistency Comparing competitors life insurance policies based solely on dividend rates does not take into account the overall value of our product features Dividend scale rates should not be confused with internal rates of return Dividend Rate What are the 2012 Dividend Scale rates? A1 MetLife expects to pay approximately $1.36 billion in dividends to eligible life insurance policyhers in This significant payment reinforces our continued commitment to providing value to our policyhers. Despite the uncertainty in the financial markets and a sustained low interest rate environment, MetLife s long standing disciplined approach toward making financial decisions has allowed us to continue this tradition of providing our policyhers with these payments. The 2012 dividend scale has received preliminary approval by the boards of directors for implementation, and it is expected to receive final approval by the boards in February Updated 2012 Dividend Scale by Franchise Dividend Rate 2011 Dividend Rate 2012 Dividend Rate Change MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company MetLife Promise Whole Life sm outside NY 5.50% 5.50% 0.00% Metropolitan Life Insurance Company MetLife Promise Whole Life sm in NY 5.50% 5.50% 0.00% Open Block of Business policies, excluding MetLife Promise Whole Life: 2001 CSO policies 5.25% 5.25% 0.00% 1980 CSO in-force policies 5.00% 5.00% 0.00% Closed Block of Business policies: For ordinary policies issued in 1982 and later 5.85% 5.60% -0.25% For ordinary policies issued before % % 5.25% % -0.25% For industrial policies 6.60% 6.60% 0.00% New England Life Insurance Company (NELICO) Open Block of Business policies by NELICO, which are in-force policies issued after the merger with MetLife 5.25% 5.25% 0.00% Closed Block of Business policies originally issued by The New England Mutual Life Insurance Company before the merger with MetLife 6.50% 6.25% % General American Life Insurance Company For in-force policies 5.50% 5.50% 0.00% As MetLife Promise Whole Life was a new participating product as of January 3, 2011, it has no history of paying any dividends. Please refer to Q9 for explanation on open and closed blocks of business. 1 MetLife consists of Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company, New England Life Insurance Company, and General American Life Insurance Company, all of which are wholly owned subsidiaries of MetLife, Inc. This amount is expected to be declared by the boards of directors of the issuing companies in February 2012 and will include all participating whole life policies. For Producer or Broker/Dealer Use Only. Not For Public Distribution.

2 Q2 A2 Why did MetLife lower its 2012 Dividend Rate on some blocks of business? MetLife remains strong and well positioned to provide the protection that our customers have come to expect. Interest rates, while only one factor in determining the dividend interest rates, continue to be at historical lows which continues to put downward pressure on our dividend interest rate. The various Open and Closed Blocks of Business of MetLife are each backed by separate blocks of assets causing them to have slightly different performance over time, resulting in different Dividend Rates. Q3 A3 How does MetLife determine the Dividend Scale? Policy dividends are based on factors such as our investment returns, mortality, expenses, taxes, policy persistency, and claims experience. The final determination of dividend scales is always made by each issuing company s board of directors. MetLife s dividend scale is set annually based on this formula: premium income investment mortality charges expenses changes in reserves* *For future claims and expenses. amount available for dividends Q4 A4 Do all carriers calculate the dividend rate the same? No. There is no industry standard for calculating a dividend rate. While subject to many of the same factors and market pressures, competitors calculate and may report dividend scales differently. Comparing competitors life insurance policies based solely on dividend rates does not take into account the value, features and benefits of our product. Although not guaranteed, it is important to look at the full projected illustrated values of a policy. MetLife uses the portfolio method to determine the interest factor used in the dividend formula. The portfolio yield is based on the average yield of all investments within it. As one block of investments matures, it is replaced with a new block of investments yielding a current market rate. If the new block of investments has a lower yield than the block that matured, then the total average portfolio yield will decrease, as has been the case in recent years. Here s a hypothetical example: Blocks of Investments 5.6 out IN 10 years 9 years 8 years 7 years 6 years 5 years 4 years 3 years 2 years 1 year replacement block hypothetical example

3 Q5 A5 If a mutual company has a higher declared dividend crediting rate than MetLife s will their policy have higher illustrated values? Whole life insurance dividends are based on many factors especially interest rates, mortality rates and expenses. It is a combination of these factors and several other assumptions that determine the dividends to be paid and the value that accumulates within the product. Therefore, any mutual or stock company can have a lower dividend crediting rate and yet have higher values accumulate within the product. Q6 A6 What are the insurance policy dividend requirements for stock and mutual companies? Both Stock and Mutual companies operating in NY must comply with stringent regulations regarding reserves and the accumulation of surplus, but the rules are slightly different pertaining to mutual and stock companies. A mutual company is permitted to maintain a surplus above all of its reserves and liabilities while a stock company, like MetLife, can only maintain a surplus above the reserves and liabilities of its participating policies. That means that a mutual company could choose to maintain more surplus and pay out less in dividends while a stock company is only allowed to look at the reserves and liabilities related to its participating policies (which are less than its total reserves and liabilities) when establishing the amount of surplus to maintain. Q7 A7 How does Metropolitan Life Insurance Company s (MLIC) dividend scale compare to the rates on a 10-year Treasury Note over the last 30-years? % 2.30% 0 Jan-80 Jan-88 Jan-96 Jan-04 Jan year treasury notes mlic dividend scale Source: Metropolitan Life Insurance Company dividend rates as of November 2011 and the 10-year Treasury Notes from the United States Government as of MLIC s dividend scale has maintained a conservative and stable rate of return over this 30-year period and has sustained higher rates due to these longer durations within the general account portfolio. However, as mentioned in previous examples, as higher yielding investments mature and are replaced with new lower yielding investments, the dividend scale rate will be driven downward. Q8 What will happen to the dividend scale in 2013? A8 The dividend scale is determined each year using factors that can vary over time. As a result, dividends can fluctuate from year to year and are never guaranteed.

4 Q9 A9 MetLife has several different rates based on Closed and Open Blocks of business, what is the difference? Metropolitan Life Insurance Company demutualized in April of 2000 and New England Life Insurance Company demutualized in of Upon demutualization, separate blocks of business were created for the Open Block and Closed Blocks of Business. The effective date of demutualization was generally the cutoff date used to determine which policies were included in which block. Each block of business is managed separately from the other blocks and each block has its own investment, mortality and expense experience that is used to determine its dividend interest rate, which often results in rates that vary between the different blocks. 0 A10 Since the MetLife Promise Whole Life product is issued by MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company in states other than NY, does MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company have the same strong ratings as Metropolitan Life Insurance Company? Yes, MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company have the same strong ratings as follows: Company A.M. Best S&P Moody s Fitch MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company A+ Superior 2 nd Highest of 16 Metropolitan Life Insurance Company A+ Superior 2 nd Highest of 16 Aa3 Excellent Aa3 Excellent 7 th Highest of 21 7 th Highest of 21 Ratings are based on financial strength of MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and are current as of November Policy guarantees are subject to the claims-paying ability and financial strength of the issuing company. 1 A11 How does the low interest rate environment impact our dividend crediting rate? MetLife s Open Block General Account is comprised of conservative short, medium and long-term investments. As er portfolio investments mature and are replaced with newer lower-yielding investments, the average portfolio yield will decrease. A sustained low-interest rate environment will therefore affect the average yield of general account portfolios and the dividend crediting rates for insurance companies. Conversely, as rates begin to increase and new investment hings are replaced by higher-yielding investments the overall portfolio and dividend crediting rate will be positively affected. This table shows an example of MetLife s Open Block crediting rates over a four year period against low, medium and short-term rates available on low-risk financial instruments and shows how our general account portfolio rate can offer a softer landing during turbulent times due to the size and timing of the maturities within the portfolio. current general account portfolio mix 3% 1% 5% 18% 9% 64% This chart is current as of 12/31/10. Please note the current portfolio mix is subject to change bonds mortgages stocks real estate policy loans cash/other Source: Vitalsigns, data as of 12/31/ Month % Change MetLife Open Block Dividend Rate 6.25% 6.25% 5.75% * 5.50% * % Investment Vehicle 30-Year Treasury 4.42% 4.18% 3.52% 3.65% % 10-Year Treasury 3.81% 3.40% 2.47% 2.30% % 3-Month Treasury 1.72% 0.13% 0.14% 0.02% % *Only applies to MetLife Promise Whole Life. Life insurance is not an investment and may not be s as an investment; comparison for illustrative purposes only. Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System as of 2011.

5 2 A12 Are mutual companies able to focus more on policy owners and put aside more surplus toward paying policy dividends than stock companies on their participating (dividend-paying) policies? While both stock and mutual companies put aside money to grow their business, mutual companies do not have the capability to raise money in the public market through selling common stock. The focus on sharehers actually motivates stock companies to run a streamlined business with competitive whole life products. Although dividends are not guaranteed, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company has consistently paid policy dividends to its eligible policyhers. These dividend payments began when it was a mutual life insurance company and have continued now that it is a stock life insurance company. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company deliberately decided to continue issuing dividend-paying policies when it became a stock company by designing, pricing and filing participating whole life policies. Policy Impact A1 How can dividends help policyhers? Dividends are an important product design element in participating whole life policies because they can enhance the overall value of the policy. Dividend payments can be used to increase the policy benefits in four ways: Accelerated Payment or Premium Reduction Dividends are applied toward the payment of the premium and in some instances may cover the entire annual premium. Additional Paid-Up Insurance Dividends are used to purchase additional paid-up life insurance, increasing the overall death benefit. Paid in Cash A check is sent to the client for the full amount of the dividend. Dividends to Accumulate with Interest The dividend is left on deposit with MetLife. The total value of the dividends plus interest, is either added to the death benefit or to the cash value. Q2 A2 How are in-force clients currently on Accelerated Payment (AP) notified that their AP arrangement may no longer cover future premiums? For clients in these circumstances beginning January 1, 2012, the annual billing statement will indicate that the AP arrangement is no longer projected to pay all future premiums and will generally offer three options: Pay the full premium out of pocket for X years and then the AP will resume for future years under the current dividend scale. Pay a specified partial premium in 2012 (and potentially future years) and then AP will resume for future years under the current dividend scale. Pay no premium in 2012 and the AP arrangement will project to support the policy for Y years. The options communicated to the client are specific to each individual policy and are based on the assumption that the 2012 Dividend Scale will not change for the life of the policy, which is unlikely. Run an in-force illustration to better prepare for discussions with clients who receive this notification in their annual billing statement.

6 Illustrations A1 Will illustration systems be updated? The most recent release of all illustration software contains the updated 2012 Dividend Scales. The 2012 Dividend Scales are preliminary and are subject to the actions of the boards of directors in Febuary, New illustration software must be installed as soon as it is received. The use of prior versions after a new version has been released is prohibited. Additional Information What is MetLife s financial stability and position in the financial services marketplace? A1 MetLife and its affiliates are today the largest life insurer in the United States based on life insurance in force. 1 MetLife and its affiliates are leading innovators and a recognized leader in protection planning, and retirement and savings solutions around the world. We have established a strong presence in over 60 countries through organic growth, acquisitions, joint ventures and other partnerships. We are strengthening our global brand by extending solutions and core competencies to markets around the world an important driver of growth for the enterprise. Around the world, the MetLife companies offer life, accident and health insurance, retirement and savings products through agents, third-party distributors such as banks and brokers, and direct marketing channels. The MetLife companies offer life insurance, disability insurance, annuities, auto and home insurance, retail banking and other financial services to individuals, as well as group insurance and retirement and savings products and services to corporations and other institutions. 1 Issue date 5/23/2011. Life insurance policies contain exclusions, limitations and conditions for keeping the policies in force. MetLife Promise Whole Life is issued by MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company on Policy Form 5E and in New York only by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company on Policy Form 1E NY. All guarantees are subject to the claims-paying ability and financial strength of the issuing insurance company. November 2011 Whole Life Insurance Products: Not A Deposit Not FDIC-Insured Not Insured By Any Federal Government Agency Not Guaranteed By Any Bank Or Credit Union MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company 5 Park Plaza, Suite 1900 Irvine, CA Metropolitan Life Insurance Company 200 Park Avenue New York, NY metlife.com BDWL22161 L [1212] 2011 MetLife, Inc.