One of two payout option methods an employer uses to distribute retirement benefits. At retirement, a retiree has the choice of either a single-life payout…

A provision within a life insurance agreement that allows the trustee of the policy to spread the death benefit around to the beneficiaries at his or…

A fund administered by a U.S. state to protect policy holders in the event that an insurance company defaults on benefit payments or becomes insolvent…

A set of accounting regulations prescribed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for the preparation of an insuring firm's financial…

A legal term meaning that someone can be held responsible for a certain action or omission because of a related law that is not open to interpretation…

State regulated reserve requirements. Insurance companies must hold a portion of their assets as either cash or marketable investments. Statutory reserves…

An insurance product that makes periodic payments to the annuitant until his or her death, at which point the payments stop completely. These products…

A term denoting a legal right that is reserved by most insurance carriers. Subrogation is the right for an insurer to pursue a third party that caused…

An insurance product that can be purchased by a person with a serious, demonstrable health problem which will likely shorten the annuitant's life expectancy…

The threshold prescribed by the Social Security Administration (SSA) for determining eligibility for Social Security benefits. Substantial gainful activity…

A fee levied on a life insurance policyholder upon cancellation of his or her life insurance policy. The fee is used to cover the costs of keeping the…

A charge levied against an investor for the early withdrawal of funds from an insurance or annuity contract, or for the cancellation of the agreement…

A right to cancel an annuity or life insurance contract in exchange for its cash value. Surrendering such a contract early can incur surrender charges…

A method of withdrawing funds from an annuity account by which the annuitant withdraws funds from the account in specified amounts for a specified payment…

The amount of time left for the repayment of a loan or contract or the initial term length of a loan. Tenor can be expressed in years, months or days…

An insurance product that guarantees a periodic payment of a predetermined amount for a fixed term. Once the term has elapsed, these products are spent…

A policy with a set duration limit on the coverage period. Once the policy is expired, it is up to the policy owner to decide whether to renew the term…

This type of administrator processes claims for a third-party company. Insurance companies and employee benefit providers often employ third-party administrators…

A life insurance policy which allows for the transferable assignment of the benefactor. In a Transferable Insurance Policy, the owner sells the policy…

Life insurance that resides inside a trust. Trust-owned life insurance is used by many high net worth individuals as the cornerstone of their estate plan…

A mortality table that lists the death rates of insured persons of each sex and age group and excludes data from policies that have been recently underwritten…

Extra liability insurance coverage that goes beyond the limits of the insured's home, auto or watercraft insurance. It provides an additional layer of…

A type of insurance vehicle in which the policyholder purchases units at their net asset values and also makes contributions toward another investment…

A type of flexible permanent life insurance offering the low-cost protection of term life insurance as well as a savings element (like whole life insurance)…

A vanishing premium policy is a form of participating whole life insurance where the policyholder can use the dividends from the policy to pay the premium…

The amount paid to a decedent's beneficiary that is dependent on the investment performance of an insurance company's separate account. The amount is…

A form of whole life insurance, variable life insurance provides permanent protection to the beneficiary upon the death of the policy holder. This type…

A form of cash-value life insurance that offers both a death benefit and an investment feature. The premium amount for variable universal life insurance…

A U.S. cabinet department that provides patient care, veterans' benefits, and other services to veterans of the U.S. armed forces and their families…

An arrangement in which someone with a terminal disease sells his or her life insurance policy at a discount from its face value for ready cash. The buyer…

A person with terminal or a life-threatening illness who sells their life insurance policy at a steep discount to an insurance firm to pay for their health-care…

A tax-free post-retirement medical expense account used by retirees and their eligible dependents to pay for any eligible medical expenses. The plan is…

Monetary reserves voluntarily held by insurance companies. Government agencies often regulate the reserve requirements of financial institutions and insurance…

1. The period of time between filing a registration statement with the SEC and the registration statement being declared effective by the SEC. Also known…

A clause in an insurance policy that waives the policyholder's obligation to pay any further premiums should he or she become seriously ill or disabled…

A life insurance plan that provides a tax benefit in regards to intergenerational transfers of wealth. The concept occurs when a tax-exempt insurance…

A life insurance contract with level premiums that has both an insurance and an investment component. The insurance component pays a stated amount upon…