The Hartford Life Insurance Company has entered the indexed universal life insurance market with The Hartford Frontier Indexed UL, an S&P500 Index-linked account. The equity-indexed option will be available alongside a fixed account earning a minimum of 2%.
"Given the realities of equity market volatility and associated downside risk experiences in recent years, more and more consumers are interested in products that can help manage [market] volatility while still providing strong growth potential," said product strategy assistance vice president Andrew Niedzielski of The Hartford's new departure. The firm hopes to keep its life-wrapped products simple in a sea of product complexity, he added.
The Hartford has also expanded its distribution strategy and has been targeting the independent producers to whom indexed universal life policies are appealing, he said.
Frontier Indexed Policyholders can choose how much of their premiums to invest in the indexed account, which has a capital-protected 100% participation in the S&P500, capped. The cap is currently set at 12% pa.
This product will be available shortly in Recent Additions (USA).