ChoicePlus Signature 1 review

It depends on what you want it to do. For someone who wants tax-deferred market exposure inside an insurance wrapper and is willing to pay for optional guarantees, it is a reasonable, mainstream choice from a financially solid carrier. For someone who wants principal protection or guaranteed income without extra cost, it is the wrong tool, because the base contract puts your money directly into market subaccounts and the income guarantee is a separate paid rider.

The main reason to buy ChoicePlus Signature 1 is tax-deferred accumulation with a broad set of investment choices. The secondary reason is the menu of optional riders. Someone who has already maxed out other tax-advantaged accounts, wants to invest in market subaccounts without yearly tax drag, and may later want to convert that balance into guaranteed lifetime income or pass it on with an enhanced death benefit is the natural buyer. The flexibility to add a long-term care rider also appeals to buyers thinking about future care costs.

I think this product is best for a buyer in their 50s or early 60s who is comfortable with market risk, has a multi-year time horizon, and has already used up more straightforward tax-advantaged options like a 401(k) or IRA. Because the value comes from tax deferral, it generally makes more sense with non-qualified (after-tax) money than inside an IRA that is already tax-deferred. It is less appropriate for someone who needs the money within a few years, wants guaranteed principal, or is fee-sensitive and does not plan to use the optional riders.

Strip away the insurance language and this is a brokerage-style investment account with a tax-deferral wrapper and an optional set of guarantees you pay extra for. Your premium buys units in subaccounts, which are essentially mutual-fund-like portfolios. Those subaccounts rise and fall with the markets, so you can lose money in the base contract. What the insurance company adds is tax deferral, a death benefit, and the right to attach living-benefit riders. That distinction matters because a variable annuity is not a protected product the way a fixed or indexed annuity is. The protection only exists to the extent you buy and pay for it.

The core of ChoicePlus Signature 1 is the investment platform. The spec lists 128 variable subaccount options, which is a deep menu spanning equity, bond, and asset-allocation strategies. Net expense ratios on those underlying funds range from 0.48% to 1.46%, and that cost sits on top of the contract's own charges. You allocate your premium across the subaccounts you choose, and your account value moves with their performance. There is no cap, participation rate, or floor, because this is not an indexed product. The upside is uncapped market participation; the downside is uncapped market loss within the base contract.

Note that the contract comes in two cost flavors. The Signature 1 standard option carries a 1.30% base mortality-and-expense charge, while the Signature 2 liquidity option runs 1.65% in exchange for more flexible withdrawal terms. This review covers the Signature 1 standard option.

The most meaningful secondary feature is the rider menu, because that is where a variable annuity earns its keep relative to a plain brokerage account. ChoicePlus Signature 1 offers optional Lincoln ProtectedPay living-benefit riders and i4LIFE Advantage income options, an enhanced guaranteed minimum death benefit, and a long-term care rider. The ProtectedPay riders include a stated 6.00% roll-up on the income benefit base, though the exact roll-up mechanics and fee tiers were reported at medium confidence in the source materials, so confirm the current terms before relying on them.

These riders are optional and priced separately, with income-rider fees running 1.50% to 2.75% per year and death-benefit enhancements adding 0.05% to 0.45%. That matters because the guarantees people associate with annuities are not free here. A 6.00% roll-up only has value if you actually turn income on, and the fee is charged whether you do or not.

This is a 7-year commitment for the bulk of your money, but it is more flexible than the surrender table alone suggests. During years one through seven, you can withdraw up to 10% of account value or 10% of total purchase payments each year without a surrender charge, and full access opens up in year eight. Withdrawals above the free amount during the surrender period are subject to charges that start at 7% and step down to 0% after year seven. There is no market value adjustment on this contract, so unlike many fixed and indexed annuities, your surrender penalty does not swing with interest rates.

The contract also waives surrender charges for nursing-home confinement, terminal illness, and disability, subject to contract and state terms. RMD treatment was reported at low confidence in the source materials, so if you plan to hold this in a qualified account, confirm directly how required distributions interact with the free-withdrawal amount and surrender charges. Even with the 10% free withdrawal, this should be treated as long-term money, not an emergency reserve.

Cost is the central tradeoff with this product, and it stacks in layers. The Signature 1 standard option carries a 1.30% base mortality-and-expense charge plus a 0.10% administration charge, which the spec describes as a total base annual expense around 1.25% excluding rider charges. On top of that, the underlying subaccounts have their own net expense ratios of 0.48% to 1.46%. There is also a $35 annual contract fee, though it is waived after year 15 or once contract value exceeds $100,000.

Then come the optional riders. An income rider runs 1.50% to 2.75% per year, and an enhanced death benefit adds 0.05% to 0.45%. Add a living-benefit rider and a fund expense ratio near the top of the range, and your all-in annual cost can climb well above 3%. That is the trade to name plainly: the income roll-up and care guarantees can be valuable, but they are charged every year whether or not you ever use them, and they come out of a balance that is already exposed to market risk. For a buyer who skips the riders and just wants tax-deferred investing, the base cost is still meaningfully higher than a low-cost brokerage account, which is the comparison worth making.

Legal Entity: The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company

Parent: Lincoln Financial Group

A.M. Best Rating: A