Annuity providers have failed to provide stronger rates this month despite a legislative ban on ratings by gender, The Annuity Bureau from JLT has said on the release of the latest annuity rates.

Aviva narrowly maintains its top spot on the leader tables for level annuities by offering £4,974, (based on figures of men and women aged 60 with a £100,000 purchase), despite shaving £186 off its monthly offering compared to December 2012. Legal and General also maintain its spot in second place having dropped its rates by just £11 compared to last December. Canada Life, while increasing its rates by almost £100 giving it an offering of £4,780 this month, has failed to provide enough lift for it rise from third place.

The leader table for a RPI index-linked £100,000 purchase found Legal and General in top spot. The provider’s rate stands at £2,782 this month having made a £34 increase, taking it from third to first place. Aviva takes second place in this leader table at a rate of £2,724, representing a £126 drop on what it offered last month. Standard Life drops from first place to third with a substantial fall of over £200.

The smoker annuity table based on men and women aged 60 with a £100,000 purchase, sees Canada Life move from first place last month to falling off the leader table altogether in January. Current first-place provider is LV= offering £5,471 – an almost £600-drop on Canada Life’s top-place rate of £6,099 last month. Just Retirement takes second place with £5,399 and Reliance Mutual is in third-place with £5,360.

The Annuity Bureau from JLT Director Richard Williams said: “Despite major annuity legislation coming into force just one month ago in December in which providers can no longer base rates on gender, and despite it being the start of a new year, it seems most providers have failed in any new year’s resolutions they may or may not have made to provide stronger rates.

“Canada Life is a provider worth noting this month as it completely crashes out of the smokers’ market, dramatically reducing the amount smokers can expect to get with their annuities. Indeed, smokers’ rates as a whole have seen some huge price differences over the last few months, underlining just how volatile the offerings being made by insurers are at the moment.

“Movements such as those shown in all figures this month underline just how important it is to shop around. People approaching retirement need to get their decision right first time - never has it been so important to make the right decision at this crucial stage in your life.”

Share Story: