Privacy policy

If you just read the site

Reading our guides does not require an account, and we do not ask for your name, email, or any personal details to browse. Like most websites, our hosting and analytics systems automatically record standard technical information — the pages you visit, your approximate location (country or region), your device and browser type, and the site that referred you. We use this only to understand which guides are useful and to keep the site running well. We do not sell this data, and we do not use it to identify you personally.

If you submit an application

Our application flow at /apply asks for the information a US insurance carrier needs to consider an annuity application. That includes, depending on the product:

• Your legal name, date of birth, address, phone number and email.
• Government identifiers — your Social Security number and identification details — needed for tax reporting and identity verification.
• Beneficiary names, relationships and dates of birth.
• Financial details — the amount you intend to invest, how you will fund it, bank or transfer details, income, net worth and your objectives — needed for the suitability review every state requires.
• Your signature and the disclosures you acknowledged.

Answers you type are saved in your own browser as you go, so you can stop and come back. Nothing leaves your device until you press submit. Once submitted, your application is stored in our secure database and is visible only to the site administrator responsible for forwarding it to a licensed agent or carrier.

Who sees your information

• The AnnuityGuide administrator, who reviews submissions and coordinates with a licensed insurance professional.
• The licensed agent or carrier your application is sent to, so they can process it. Their own privacy policies apply once they hold it.
• Our service providers — hosting and database infrastructure — who process data on our behalf under contractual safeguards.

We do not sell your information, share it with advertisers, or use your application details for marketing. We will disclose information only if the law requires it.

How long we keep it

Submitted applications are kept while your application is being processed and for a reasonable period afterwards in case you or the carrier need to reference it. Unsubmitted drafts never leave your browser and disappear when you clear your browser data. You can ask us to delete a submitted application at any time — see below.

How it is protected

Applications are transmitted over encrypted connections and stored in an access-controlled database. Sensitive numbers such as Social Security and account numbers are masked by default in our admin view and revealed only when the administrator explicitly chooses to view them. No system is perfectly secure, but we limit access to the minimum number of people needed to process your application.

Your choices

• Don't submit. Browsing requires nothing from you, and an unsubmitted draft stays on your own device.
• Ask what we hold. Contact us and we will confirm what information we have about you.
• Ask us to correct or delete it. We will correct inaccurate information and delete your application on request, unless we are required to keep it by law.

To make any of these requests, contact us through the site. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe.

Changes to this policy

If we change what we collect or how we use it, we will update this page and change the "last updated" date above. Material changes will be noted prominently rather than edited silently.