“Deferred annuity riders” have moved onto the radar screen of variable annuity regulators in Washington. At issue is how the features are or will be disclosed. The outcome will have impact on producers — not now, but in the future…

Amy Florian was having dinner one evening at the home of a financial advisor. During the course of conversation, the advisor mentioned that he didn’t always know what to say to clients who had just suffered the loss of a loved one…

One of the challenges that agents and advisors face when presenting income annuities to clients is how to help customers understand what factors impact retirement income outcomes…

Harbinger Group has made still another foray into the annuity business. The publicly held company’s latest deal is an annuity reinsurance treaty closed with Bankers Life…

Fixed-rate market value adjusted (MVA) annuities made a big splash in third quarter, with sales jumping 88.1 percent over the previous quarter and 131.5 percent over third quarter last year…

November’s improved employment numbers should be a pick-me-up for advisors, at least for those who believe they have skin in the game where job growth is concerned…

Every state should “adopt and enforce” the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Suitability in Annuities Transaction Model Regulation, according to the Federal Insurance Office (FIO)…

The fortunes of the fixed annuity business are so closely tied to the movement of interest rates that fixed annuity professionals follow rate developments closely. Right now, some professionals might be getting cross-eyed, due to what seems to be mixed messages in this area…

According to a new strategic alliance, Allstate Financial will start selling fixed annuities manufactured and underwritten by ING U.S., effective in January…

State legislators are forming a new task force to examine the various approaches that states are taking regarding unclaimed life insurance death benefits…

Variable annuity changes recorded by Morningstar dropped to a near-record low of 84 in the third quarter. The record was a mere 59 changes made in first quarter 2011…

An elderly widow sold two annuities and deposited the cash-out into a bank. Thus began a chain of events in which the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) wound up charging two brokers with stealing $300,000 from the widow…

It’s not often that insurance industry organizations endorse regulatory proposals for inquiry into business practices, but this is an exception…

What a difference a quarter makes in annuity sales results. In third quarter, total fixed sales were up 31 percent over third quarter last year, according to LIMRA’s new estimated results…

Perhaps the biggest jaw-dropper in the past week was Wink, Inc.’s report that indexed annuity production broke yet another record, with sales hitting $10 billion for the quarter…

In order for insurance to break out of the fuddy-duddy, people need to think outside the jar…

Consumers may have an approach/avoidance conflict when it comes to annuities. They see the value of the annuity’s income stream and tax deferral but they also have excuses for not buying — excuses that advisors might counter with a reality check based on research…

The interest rate environment may no longer be the source of acute pain it once was in the annuity industry…

The “death master file” issue is far from dead. An influential committee of state insurance regulators recently voted to explore whether it should look into establishing a framework for handling unclaimed death benefit issues…

Don’t mess with tax deferral in retirement savings products. Do preserve tax deferral in annuities. Don’t take tax deferral for granted, and don’t take it away…