Certainty Select 3 review

Yes, with a caveat on carrier strength. This is a reasonably good annuity for someone who wants a short, locked-rate commitment and finds EquiTrust's current 4.80% rate attractive enough to accept a B++ carrier rating instead of an A-rated alternative. It is less attractive for someone who treats carrier financial strength as a non-negotiable filter, or who wants free-withdrawal access beyond just the interest earned.

The rational reason to buy Certainty Select 3 is the rate — 4.80% guaranteed for three years is competitive against most 3-year MYGAs on the market today. The second reason is the optional liquidity rider, which at no additional cost loosens the free-withdrawal restrictions in exchange for a reduced surrender schedule and a different death benefit structure — a tradeoff some buyers value more than the standard contract's terms. Together, these make the product a reasonable pick for someone comfortable underwriting the carrier's B++ rating themselves.

I think Certainty Select 3 is best for a conservative saver with $10,000 or more who wants a short, three-year rate lock and has already made peace with EquiTrust's B++ A.M. Best rating — whether because the deposit is within state guaranty association limits, or because the rate premium over higher-rated carriers is worth it to them. The broad 0-90 issue-age range also makes it usable for older buyers and for beneficiary or inherited-account planning. It is a weaker fit for anyone who wants a top-tier-rated carrier as a hard requirement, or who is likely to need more than the interest earned before the three years are up.

You are buying a three-year interest-rate lock, full stop. EquiTrust credits a fixed rate — currently 4.80%, guaranteed not to change for the full term — on whatever premium you deposit, subject to a minimum guaranteed rate floor if it renews. There's no index participation, no income rider, no premium bonus. The rate is the product. The one wrinkle is the optional liquidity rider: at no extra cost, it changes the death benefit from the base contract's Accumulation Value payout to a choice of immediate Cash Surrender Value or a payout stream, and in exchange it loosens some of the withdrawal restrictions built around the standard surrender schedule. It's an either/or election, not an add-on you stack on top of the base design.

Certainty Select 3 uses a single fixed-account crediting method — no moving parts. The current rate is 4.80%, guaranteed for the full three-year term as of the March 2026 Wink data snapshot. At renewal, EquiTrust resets the rate for a new term, subject to the contract's Minimum Guaranteed Interest Rate floor, so the 4.80% is not a permanent number — it's what's locked in for this initial guarantee period only. Buyers should treat the rate as a snapshot, not a promise for any period beyond the current three-year term.

The most distinctive secondary feature is the optional liquidity rider. Most MYGAs give you one fixed structure: a surrender schedule, a free-withdrawal provision, and a death benefit, take it or leave it. Certainty Select 3 lets buyers elect, at no additional cost, a version that changes those terms — reducing the surrender charge schedule in exchange for looser withdrawal access, but also changing the death benefit away from the base contract's straightforward Accumulation Value payout. It's not available in North Carolina, Ohio, or Texas, and the brochure doesn't spell out the exact reduced schedule, so anyone considering it should ask for the specific numbers before electing it.

The base contract's free-withdrawal provision only covers cumulative interest earned — not a percentage of account value — and it's available in every contract year, with a $250 minimum per withdrawal. That's more restrictive than MYGAs that offer 10% of account value annually; it works fine for someone who only wants access to what the contract has earned, but it won't help someone who needs to pull out a meaningful chunk of principal early. Withdrawals beyond the interest-only amount trigger both the surrender charge schedule (10%, 10%, 9% across the three years) and a market value adjustment, which can add to or subtract from the penalty depending on how interest rates have moved since issue — a real source of unpredictability that a non-MVA product doesn't carry.

The contract also includes a no-cost nursing home waiver (through age 80, after 90 days of confinement past the first contract year, not available in Massachusetts) and a terminal illness waiver, plus a 30-day window at the end of the guarantee period to surrender, withdraw, renew, or annuitize without penalty.

There are no explicit fees on the base contract — no M&E charge, no administration fee, no annual contract fee. The optional liquidity rider is also offered at no additional cost, though its trade isn't cost-free in a different sense: electing it means accepting a reduced surrender charge schedule and a different death benefit than the base design pays. For a buyer who values the base contract's straightforward Accumulation Value death benefit, that's a real tradeoff to weigh, not a free upgrade. Vermont residents should note the MVA does not apply there, which removes one layer of early-withdrawal risk for that state's contracts.

Legal Entity: EquiTrust Life Insurance Company

A.M. Best Rating: B++