Safety, Security and your annuity
The key question is this: “How do I know that my money is safe? I want GUARANTEED income for life, safe, secure and void of risk.” The Fixed Indexed Annuity provides just that.
Consequently, each month, millions of dollars are being moved from stocks, bonds, mutual funds, variable annuities, ETFs, 401(k)s, and CDs into Fixed Indexed Annuities.
Why?
The #1 reason is SAFETY. It is far better to avoid and eliminate any possibility of losses than to try to make up for losses after the fact.
This is the #1 rule in investing!
Having a principal guarantee makes fixed indexed annuities much safer than stocks, bonds, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, and variable annuities, which do NOT have a principal guarantee.
So, how does this safety work? On what is this safety based? The safety of Fixed Indexed Annuities is a multi-layered safety net that will give you great comfort. It begins with the insurance company assets and ends with a government guarantee.
Are you concerned about trusting an insurance company with your important retirement funds?
How safe is your indexed annuity? Should you trust an indexed annuity with your important retirement funds? What happens if an insurance company were to fail? These and other questions are vitally important, and the answers may surprise you.
Why even ask these questions? In the past investors simply trusted the third party, now after the financial meltdown beginning in 2008, questions must be asked.
And answered.
The simple fact remains that retirees and retiring Baby Boomers today are looking for a way to guarantee that their money is safe and that they will have enough income to last as long as they live. Income is the more important decision, far more important than having enough money.
“Income is King with the Baby Boomers.”
So is the money safe in an annuity? Baby Boomers are very concerned about safety for onestraightforward reason,
“They don’t have time to make it again!”
Other than social security and earned pensions, most retirement investments are not guaranteed and are subject to variations of account values, volatility. How can they be assured their retirement accounts will last as long as they are needed?
Their worries are justified, and the number one concern for retiring Baby Boomers is simple: safety. Is my money safe? So, how does this safety work? How are annuities guaranteed? The safety of annuities is like a safety net, a safety net to cover any possible occurrence.
Here is how it all works:
1. Insurance Company Assets: The safety of an Index Annuity is based on the financial strength and claims-paying ability of the company which issues the annuity. Annuities are regulated by individual state Department of Insurance (DOI). The DOI regulates, audits, sets reserves of the insurance companies this assures the annuity purchaser of the solvency of the insurance company.
These highly regulated companies are also subject to strict capital reserve requirements which result in reserve level requirements. These capital requirements are higher than the capital reserve requirements for banks regulated by the FDIC.
Because of the high regulations required by each DOI, the insurance companies must invest in solid safe and suitable vehicles. They invest in some of the most highly-rated and conservative investments available such as highly rated corporate bonds. In addition, a high percentage of their investments are in U.S. government bonds, U.S. Treasuries.
2.Protection from Creditors: In many states, by law, the assets of insurance company policyholders cannot be attached by creditors of the insurance company. The amount that is protected and how it can be protected varies wildly from state to state (remember each state sets their own rules about annuities)
The protection from creditors could be 100%, or it could protect only a few dollars per month. It is important to know what your state allows, always consult legal professionals or your state department of insurance.
It is always important to contact your local Department of Insurance of legal counsel before making any permanent decisions because each state has different rules and guidelines.
3. Surplus Capital: Many insurance companies have on deposit funds in excess of the required 100% of the benefits owed. Many insurance companies have in addition to their required reserves “surplus” capital
Strong, well-managed insurance companies could typically have from four to ten cents per reserve dollar in surplus capital.
Insurance companies function under a completely different system than does our banking industry and as such the reserves of insurance companies could exceed those required of the banking industry.
Solvency Ratio: This is the percentage of assets greater than liabilities. Divide the liabilities into the assets to determine the ratio.
When considering using an insurance company’s products for your important invested assets, ask your local department of insurance about the company’s solvency ratios. Anything above 105% means a well run and secure insurance company.
4. Strong Reserves, the Legal Reserve System: Insurance companies must have on hand $1 in reserves for every $1 in benefits owed. 100% and nothing less. What does that mean?
It means a system is in place to guarantee your indexed annuity is safe. A high level of safety is best served by a legal reserve system. A legal reserve system requires, by law, that a certain level of reserves be maintained by an institution at all times.
The legal reserve system governs both banks and insurance companies, but the legal reserve systems for each is separate is different from the other.
Bank and savings & loan CDs are backed up by the Legal Reserve system, which is regulated by the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation). Banks are regulated under the laws governing depository institutions. In the United States, depository institutions must meet capital guidelines issued by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. (FRB)
The amount of reserves required by the Federal Reserve Bank varies depending on monetary conditions existing worldwide. Normal adequate capitalization is around 8%, not the 100% required by annuity companies.
The result of these differences in “reserve” deposits is leverage. Obviously, if your reserve is 8% instead of 100% you would be more leveraged than you would be with a higher percentage of deposit.
Because annuity companies are regulated at the state level, 50 different DOI are examining and auditing the same companies financials. An insurance company must honor the insurance laws, rules and regulations of each state in America in which it wants to do business. These laws, rules, and regulations are complex and, because they are individual to each state, severely limit the types and kinds of investments that insurance companies can make. Insurance companies are required to keep the majority of customer funds in extremely conservative instruments such as U.S. government bonds and the most highly-rated corporate bonds. It is up to each state DOI to determine the solvency of insurance companies doing business in its state.
As a comparison to other “no risk” deposits, bank Certificates of Deposit (CDs) are guaranteed by the legal reserve system maintained by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the FDIC), in amounts of up to $250,000 per depositor per institution.
Other investment possibilities such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. do not have any legal reserve requirements; their value is based on the volatility of their market sectors.
