The product has been designed for retirees who want a secure fixed income for a limited time, before making a decision on their lifetime retirement income options, LV= says.

The Protected Retirement Plan (PRP) offers fixed terms of between three and 25 years, falling to 20 years after 6 April 2010.

Retirees will receive a fixed income, subject to GAD limits, with a guaranteed maturity value, which they can then re-invest in a lifetime annuity at a later date. Income options are flexible and the plan uses unsecured pension rules to offer flexibility for investors.

LV= has also launched a trustee investment plan, which combines the PRP’s guarantees with the investment options available in a SIPP.

The product suits healthy lives that may become enhanced at a later date. In simple terms you buy a fixed term annuity with a guaranteed maturity fund and a fixed term. At the end of the fixed term you can then either annuitise fully or purchased another fixed term annuity.