In 2010, the Harkin Amendment was passed, defeating SEC Rule 151A and declaring fixed indexed annuities (FIAs) to be insurance products, rather than securities. With the passing of this legislation, carriers that want to ensure indexed annuities are defined as insurance products are responsible for supervising the suitability of recommendations to purchase indexed annuities.

Additionally, in order to further protect the consumer, producers are required to be trained on the provisions of annuities in general, and the specific products they are selling. So far in 2011, we have seen several states and various carriers adopt the NAIC Suitability in Annuity Transaction Model Regulation training requirements.

Please be aware that if you do not complete the required training by the specified completion dates, it could hold up the closing of business.

State and Carrier-Specific Training Requirements

Additional NAIC Training Requirement Information

• Online Training Course from WebCE®
• Creative Marketing's Agent Compliance Webpage
• Navigating the murky waters: Education requirements of the NAIC Model Regulation
• Documentation and Doughnuts
• Framing your case: The art of suitability