News Archive - March 2011
Annuity Rates to be equalised
30/03/2011
TThe European Court of Justice has just ruled on the perceived unfairness of charging different insurance premiums for men and women. From December 2012, insurers will no longer be permitted to charge male drivers more than women for their car insurance based purely on their gender.
This ruling also applies to pension annuities and is set to have a big effect on annuity rates. At the moment, women get worse annuity rates than men due to the fact that they tend to live for longer. If the rates for men and women are equalised, it should lead to better annuity rates for women but worse annuity rates for men.
This change is unlikely to happen at once – there is more likely to be a drifting upwards of female rates and a gradual fall in male rates between now and the end of 2012.
There are of course other factors that influence annuity rates – but in my opinion the long-term outlook for male annuity rates is not great. Please call Mulberry Financial if you would like to discuss your pension options.