DOL Rule Confusion Leads to Wait-and-See Approach
May 18, 2017 by Cyril Tuohy
Confusion surrounding the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule has caused insurance distributors to hold back on specific sales strategies and that could affect annuity sales this year, insurance company executives said.
The rule, which raises investment advice standards into retirement accounts, also appears to be having an impact on the amount of money going into nonretirement accounts.
“The DOL is creating confusion more than anything else, and so you’re seeing some of our distribution partners not coming forward with their specific plans, because they are waiting to see what the final rule is really going to be,” said Dennis R. Glass, president and CEO of Lincoln Financial, a major seller of variable annuities.
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In 2016 FIA sales rose 9.7 percent to a record $58.2 billion compared with 2015, industry tracker Wink’s Sales & Market report said.
