Description: The failure of a few large life insurers in the early 1990's led to public concern about the safety of annuities purchased by qualified retirement plans. As a result, the Department of Labor issued guidelines, known as the 'Safest Annuity Rule,' for selecting annuity providers. This study examines whether the Safest Annuity Rule is significantly changing the market for insured annuities issued to tax-qualified pension plans, particularly upon the termination of defined benefit plans. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1997-98 Reports.

Description: In the early 1990s, when several large U.S. and Canadian life insurers teetered on the brink of insolvency and finally collapsed, the U.S. Department of Labor issued its 'safest annuity' provision [DOL Interpretive Bulletin 95-1] ruling that private pension plans buying annuities had the fiduciary obligation to choose the 'safest available' provider. This article examines the effect this ruling has had on the annuity market.

Description: 1999 SOA Spring Meeting, Atlanta. This session addressed the risks and potential costs of long-term guarantees in some insurance products. Topics included: · Guaranteed annuity purchase rates - how close are current rates to the guarantees? · Guaranteed minimum credited rates. · Guaranteed bonus rates.