Annuity Hound is the online annuity information resource for expatriates.
Annuities guarantee to provide a regular income stream in exchange for a lump sum payment.
In the UK, annuities are provided by insurance companies. Investment returns from UK annuities are driven by interest rates on fixed interest Sterling deposits as well as a whole host of demographic and actuarial factors related to the investor such as age, state of health, former (or current) occupation as well as other personal and lifestyle factors.
In the UK, annuities were the original and are still the most popular means of providing income in retirement.
One of the main criticisms of annuities is that they represent poor value. Annuity returns are currently historically quite low in the UK simply due to the current interest rate environment. But anyone retiring in the UK in 1992, whose pension fund was used to purchase annuities, would today probably continue to enjoy a guaranteed return on investment of over 10 percent for the rest of their life.
Learn about the key features of the different types of annuity available to investors. This information is particularly aimed at British expats with existing UK pension rights but is equally relevant to expats of any nationality with British pension rights.