Harris Poll: 85% of workers 40-61 rate guaranteed monthly income appealing; 23% own annuities

A Harris Poll of U.S. workers aged 40 to 61 found 85% rated guaranteed monthly income in retirement very or somewhat appealing, while just 23% reported having purchased an annuity. PLANADVISER first reported the results, which the pollster collected on behalf of Athene Holding Ltd.

Interest concentrated in income for life, cited by 57% of respondents, and a set monthly payment, cited by 49%. Forty-three percent said they were very or extremely concerned about not having a guaranteed source of income in retirement.

Thirty-four percent of respondents said they mostly or fully understood annuities, while 54% said they knew very little about or somewhat understood them. Twelve percent said they did not understand annuities.

Fifty-one percent said they would consider buying or planned to buy annuities. Fifty-two percent named factors that made them hesitate, including the perception that annuities are confusing and concerns about their money being unavailable, each cited by 20%.

More than 60% of respondents, drawn from Generation X and Millennials, said they had fewer guaranteed income options than previous generations, according to the poll.

LIMRA's Retirement Income Readiness Report, published last month, found 71% of pre-retirees interested in retirement income that included protected lifetime income streams such as Social Security, pensions or annuities. Seventy-four percent said they were very or somewhat interested in learning about protected lifetime income. Concerns about retirement income products included fees, named by 35%, lack of control over savings, named by 27%, and locking up money, named by 26%.

"The challenge for the industry is not simply product awareness," the LIMRA report stated. "It is helping consumers understand how retirement income solutions fit into broader financial plans and long-term retirement goals, and how those solutions can be calibrated to investors' preferences and risk tolerance."

Read together, the two surveys suggest that appetite for guaranteed income is not the binding constraint: with 34% reporting solid comprehension of annuities and 52% naming at least one hesitation, the friction appears to sit in how the products are explained and framed. That reading is an inference from the survey counts, not a finding the reports state.