Description: The first in a series of articles exploring the improvement in retiree life expectancies and ways the improvement can be incorporated into actuarial estimates of annuity and pension plan reserves.

Description: Article discussing an alternative method to calculate the PBA deterministic reserve called the “Direct Iteration” method.

Description: Discusses two different issues of current concern in the UK: Transfer Values and Personal Pensions.

Description: An increasingly popular tool in estate planning is the Joint Life policy payable upon the second death. The design and pricing of this policy is influenced significantly by cash value and reserve requirements. This article discusses two methods for calculating these values.

Description: In this paper, how various factors affect the mortality of retirees is investigated. It is found that the effect is often different for older ages than for younger ages. The method to develop actuarial models that take into account the factors will be discussed. From Actuarial Research Clearing House, Volume 38, No. 1.

Description: In the U.S. in the late 1980’s, the Internal Revenue Service was taking steps to try to institute explicit boundaries for the actuarial assumptions being used in 'funding' valuations to determine the appropriate contribution levels for small pension plans. This article was written in the context of that environment, to defend the rights of actuaries to their professional judgement. The courts eventually supported this perspective.

Description: Part 2 of an article which presents simplified problem and and presented alternate models. Answers are presented in this article. The author's final question is: If traditional actuarial models stumble over these issues, can we get it right for real world funding pension plans and funding practices?

Description: The Actuary Vol. 22, No. 1. This article discusses the impact of a change in procedure in the financing of the US Military Retirement System. The change requires amortizing the past service liability. The impact will depend upon whether the amortization is achieved by increasing current taxes and decreasing the current deficit, or by merely increasing the national debt and leaving the current deficit unchanged. The author asserts that the new financing method will not weaken the financial condition of the military retirement system, and that it has the potential to strengthen its financial condition if the funding of the past service liability is handled appropriately.

Description: Presents concerns regarding assumptions for inflation.

Description: The Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 87. Employers’ Accounting for Pensions, became effective in 1987. This is an accounting/actuarial standard with significant income statement and balance sheet implications. This article discuses the results of a survey of selected affected companies regarding the impact of this standard.