Skip to content

LIMRA Consumer Research

Summary

About 10 million Defined Contribution (DC) participants change jobs each year – 3.4 million with account balances of less than $5,000.

More than half of these “low balance” participants cash out their DC plans when they change jobs.

Over the longer term, these participants – most of them younger – lose out on the potential for long-term growth of their retirement investment.

Cashing out is the “easy” behavior for these smaller balance accounts.

Automatic portability is a new approach to helping individuals retain retirement assets, in the Defined Contribution system, as they change jobs throughout their careers – and may be especially beneficial for younger workers. 

LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute Assistant Vice President Matthew Drinkwater, Ph.D., FLMI, AFSI, PCS hosted Retirement Clearinghouse’s Spencer Williams and Tom Johnson at LIMRA’s 2016 Retirement Industry Conference to discuss the notion of Automatic Portability in DC plans, and advances on the regulatory and policy fronts. 

No part of any report may be reproduced or translated without written permission from LIMRA. Please contact Customer Service for further information.

Panel Discussion (Full Video)

 

Full Video (48 minutes)

 

Video Segments

Related Research

Workers and Wellness: A LIMRA Wellness Update

This update to the LIMRA Financial Wellness Index® focuses on workers’ stress and solutions for achieving wellness.

Advised Versus Non-Advised: Two Paths, One Direction

Discover how investors with and without financial professionals approach rollover decisions and the opportunities to close the advice gap.

Ascent to Agency Success: Recruiting, Training, and Retaining High Performing Agents in Japan

This report provides insights from industry and agency leaders on effective recruiting and retention practices, common mistakes to avoid, and the role of training in enhancing productivity.

Canadian Individual Annuities

Benchmark sales for a range of fixed and segregated fund contracts; by distribution system and province. New Q1 2025 summary data.


Meet the Project Director


Did you accomplish the goal of your visit to our site?

Yes No