Legal & General has released a downloadable annuity quote checklist and accompanying guide aimed at savers aged 55 and over, as the UK individual annuity market posts its strongest year in more than a decade. According to data from the Association of British Insurers, total premiums paid into individual pension annuities reached £7.4billion in 2025, a 4% rise year-on-year and the highest annual figure since pension freedoms were introduced in 2014.
The checklist prompts prospective annuitants to assemble pension pot details, relevant medical history and product preferences before approaching a provider for a quote. L&G says a completed quote can be generated online in around 15 minutes. The firm also pointed to its Annuity Ready comparison service, which it describes as a means of checking whether its rates sit favourably against the broader market.
Wellbeing data and the sales case
Alongside the product guide, L&G published research conducted with the Happiness Research Institute, a Danish wellbeing think tank, based on a survey of 3,000 UK retirees. The study found that retirees holding an annuity were more likely to report lower stress levels, with 51% citing this benefit, and higher financial confidence at 24%, compared with 21% among those without guaranteed income products. Nearly a quarter of annuity holders surveyed said a regular income for life was their primary motivation for choosing the product, while 16% highlighted easier budgeting and 13% cited greater financial control.
Mike Batty, managing director for home finance and product and strategy director for retail retirement at L&G, said: “We want to empower people to see how an annuity can form the secure foundation of a flexible, blended retirement plan. By covering essential costs, it allows other investments to provide for more of life’s wants.”
The company’s retail annuity sales reached £1.8billion in its most recent financial year, according to the group’s own disclosures, positioning it as one of the larger players in a market that has recovered significantly since defined contribution pension freedoms gave savers the right to drawdown in 2015.
Market context and competitive backdrop
The revival of annuity demand reflects a confluence of factors: higher interest rates have improved annuity pricing relative to the low-rate era, and an ageing population with significant defined contribution pension pots is entering decumulation. Several providers, including Aviva, Canada Life and Just Group, compete in the same space, and the market has seen product innovation around enhanced annuities for those with qualifying medical conditions, which can deliver meaningfully higher income.
The regulatory frame is also relevant. The FCA‘s Retirement Income Review and its ongoing focus on the Consumer Duty require providers to demonstrate that customers are being directed towards genuinely suitable products rather than defaulting to whatever the existing pension provider offers. L&G’s checklist and comparison tool can be read partly in that light: guiding customers to shop around aligns with both Consumer Duty obligations and the FCA’s longstanding concern that many retirees do not switch provider at the point of annuity purchase, leaving significant income on the table over the course of retirement.
The next material signal from L&G will be whether the checklist drives a measurable uplift in inbound quote volumes and, ultimately, whether the comparison tool produces meaningful switching activity or primarily reinforces existing L&G sales. Neither figure is likely to be disclosed publicly, but the underlying market trajectory suggests the annuity segment will remain commercially significant for the next several years.
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