Glossary

The installment refund option is an annuity payment option under which any portion of the original premium not yet paid out as income at the annuitant's death continues as ongoing installments to a named beneficiary until the premium has been fully recovered. Why it matters The installment refund option adds a beneficiary residual to a lifetime annuity payout that protects against the case in which the annuitant dies before having received income equal to the premium paid, with th

An insurance agent is a state-licensed individual or entity authorized to solicit, negotiate, and place insurance contracts — including annuity contracts — on behalf of one or more insurance carriers, and to receive commission compensation from the carrier on placed business. Why it matters Most US annuities are sold through insurance agents, who serve as the carrier's authorized representative in the transaction. The agent's structural relationship to the carrier — captive to a s