By shopping around for an annuity a retiree could get up to 40% more income with the best enhanced annuity rates. They can do this by utilising the open market option. Staggeringly, 30% of retirees don’t even bother to look, research shows. According to research from the Association of Btirish Insurers (ABI), only two thirds of annuity buyers use the open market option when looking to buy an annuity.

Others are wrongly assuming various reasons why it would not be worth their while, according to George Ladds, head of investment and pensions at Fair Investment Company. For example, the ABI found around 23% think as they only have a small pension fund, it is not worth shopping around. In fact, it doesn’t matter whether your pension fund is £5,000 or £1 million, you should always exercise your right to use the open maket option, he explained. You could get more than 30% extra for your pension fund whatever its value if you qualify for enhanced annuity rates.

When you’re looking for annuity quotes, are special annuity rates, enhanced annuity rates for you? Many believe that about 40% of people at retirement could qualify for special annuity rates. These annuity rates are more commonly called enhanced annuity rates. When you buy an annuity, insurance companies work out your life expectancy. This is because they will have to pay the income to you until you die. If you have health problems or have previously suffered from certain medical conditions, such as cancer, heart attack, asthma, diabetes, high cholesterol or high blood pressure then you may get enhanced annuity rates because it is likely you will have a life expectancy somewhat shorter than a fit and healthy person of the same age.

You can also get enhanced annuity rates for various lifestyle factors such as smoking, if you’re overweight, alcohol consumption and in some cases your previous occupation. According to Just Retirement, one of the enhanced annuity rates providers, moderate cases that qualify could see rate increases of around 33% and the most serious cases could get rates up to 60% higher. Before you buy an annuity you should find out if you qualify for enhanced annuity rates, as they can make a difference.

To get special annuity rates you would normally need to complete a medical questionnaire providing as much information about your lifestyle and state of health as you can. This medical questionnaire is then sent to the underwriters of all the annuity providers that offer enhanced annuity rates. Once underwritten then each provider sends their best annuity quote for the circumstances listed. You can then accept the best annuity quote and apply to the provider, who will then process your annuity application.

Why should you use this online annuity quotes annuity calculator, aside from the important fact that we can get you higher annuity rates. It’s quite possible that you could increase your retirement income by perhaps 30% to 40% depending on the state of your health and your lifestyle. To give you peace of mind and to ensure you receive expert, unbiased advice you can rely on we’ve teamed up with AEGON Direct to offer you this service. AEGON Direct are part of the AEGON Group, one of the world’s largest insurers. In some eyes that’s good enough reason to use this online annuity quotes service.

However, I’m going to provide you with five good reasons as to why you might want to use this service, First, we can offer you some of the best annuity rates available from leading UK annuity providers. Secondly, we’ve got an easy to use annuity calculator with instant up to date online annuity quotes. Our service is free, with free quotes, no obligation, and there are no fees to be paid to us. We’ve a dedicated team of experienced and qualified advisers at AEGON Direct just waiting for your call, and the advice you receive is backed by a major financial institution.

So, don’t miss out on thousands of pounds of vital retirement income. If you suffer from health, smoke or drink, if you’re overweight, and also if your occupation is of a more hazardous nature you could qualify for more income. However, to get the best deal it’s important you tell us as much as you can about your situation that might effect the rates you’re offered. Use our online annuity calculator in the first instance – see how much extra income you could get. Then bear in mind you could get more if you’re in poor health, or because of your lifestyle.

We can help you get a better deal at retirement. Our annuity calculator leads to the best UK annuity rates, and you could increase your retirement income by up to 30%; perhaps even more. Try our annuity calculator for your free personalised annuity quote. We’ll compare top annuity rates from major UK annuity providers, and there’s no obligation and no fees. To ensure you receive expert, unbiased advice you can rely on we’ve teamed up with AEGON Direct to offer you this service. They’re part of the AEGON Group, one of the world’s largest insurers. Contacting us is easy; you can call us free on 0800 077 3510.

Make sure you don’t miss out on thousands of pounds of vital retirement income. You could qualify for a significantly higher income if you suffer from ill health, if you smoke or drink regularly, if you’re overweight (perhaps obese), and also if your occupation is of a more hazardous nature. If you want the best deal it’s important you tell us as much as you can about your state of health or your lifestyle that might effect the rates you’re offered. The more you can tell us, the higher the rates could be. This is because UK annuity rates are all about life expectancy. If your circumstances suggest you might have a lower than average life expectancy, you’ll get a higher income, because the insurance company will anticipate paying you for a shorter period of time.

Our annuity calculator will provide you with a good guide as to what to expect at retirement. However, for further examples, see the standard annuity rates page if you’re fit and healthy, the enhanced annuity rates page if you suffer from some form of ill health, and the smoker annuity rates page if you’re a regular smoker. Whatever the size of your pension fund, we’ll help you get the best income from it. That could mean an extra £20, £50, or £100, each and every month for the rest of your retirement. Money that can come in pretty useful when it comes to paying bills or taking a holiday.

You can get higher annuity rates for ill health, smoking, and lifestyle, and we’ve plenty of examples on the enhanced annuity rates page of this website. Your medical condition(s) might not actually be shown, but you are able to get a good idea of the higher annuity rates you might receive in your retirement. Diabetes, for example, can result in annuity rates around 30% higher, asthma around 10%. There are actually over 1,500 medical conditions that can be considered for higher annuity rates. Examples: Alzheimer’s, angina, arthritis, blood pressure, various cancers, cholesterol, DVT, heart attack or stroke, heart disease, kidney complaints, liver complaints, Parkinson’s disease, and rheumatism.

You need to be prepared to fully disclose details about your medical condition(s) to get higher annuity rates. Have you had a health check recently? Did it reveal anything that might effect the annuity rates you’re likely to be offered? The average increase in annuity income from higher enhanced annuity rates compared to standard annuity rates is around 22%, so don’t miss out on what could be a significantly higher retirement income. And, annuity rates 50% higher aren’t uncommon for very serious medical problems.