Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
Secure Horizon Choice 7 earns a strong rating because it gives accumulation-focused buyers a competitive index menu, a clean 7-year surrender structure, and a meaningful optional rider bundle without forcing anyone to pay for features they do not need. It does not rate higher because the income roll-up mechanism — 150% of interest credited annually — depends entirely on underlying crediting performance, which makes it harder to underwrite as a retirement income tool compared to products with fixed guaranteed roll-ups.
The short version
This is a 7-year fixed indexed annuity issued by one of the stronger-rated carriers in the space, with six index choices, a modular optional rider, and a clean base contract. North American keeps the base product simple: no mandatory annual fee, principal protection from market downturns, and a free-withdrawal provision that lets most savers take systematic distributions without penalty. The optional Retirement Benefits Rider adds income, enhanced death benefit, and ADL coverage for 0.50% per year — but that fee and those features only matter if you actually elect them.
Key facts
The full review
Is North American Secure Horizon Choice 7 a Good Annuity?
Yes, for the right buyer. This is a good annuity for someone who wants principal protection, a range of crediting methods, and the ability to add income and care benefits without being locked into them from day one. It is less compelling for someone whose primary goal is maximizing guaranteed lifetime income, since the roll-up structure here is contingent on credited interest rather than a fixed guaranteed rate.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The main reason is accumulation with downside protection inside a moderate surrender window. The secondary reason is optionality. Because the Retirement Benefits Rider is optional, someone can open this contract as a pure accumulation vehicle and add the rider later if their retirement planning needs shift. That kind of modularity is genuinely useful, and it keeps the base contract cost-free for buyers who do not need income design right now.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think Secure Horizon Choice 7 is best for someone in their mid-50s to mid-70s who wants a 7-year principal-protected vehicle, values having multiple crediting choices, and wants the option — but not the obligation — to turn on a lifetime income and chronic illness benefit later. It works in both qualified and non-qualified accounts. It is less appealing for someone who wants a simple single-index FIA, needs income guarantees backed by a fixed accumulation rate, or is in Massachusetts, New Jersey, or Washington where the rider is not available.
What You're Really Buying Here
You are buying a principal-protected insurance contract that credits interest using one of several index-linked formulas, plus an optional rider that can convert that accumulated value into lifetime income. What you are not buying is direct market exposure. The indexed crediting protects against direct market losses; in years when the selected index is negative, the account receives zero interest rather than losing principal. That zero floor is the core protection mechanism, and the range of indices and crediting methods gives you more ways to position the contract than a typical two-option FIA allows.
How the Core Feature Works
Secure Horizon Choice 7 offers four crediting methods across six indices. The annual point-to-point with cap rate measures the selected index at the start and end of a contract year and credits that gain up to a cap. The annual point-to-point with participation rate credits a stated percentage of the index gain with no separate cap. The fixed rate is a declared interest rate with no index linkage. The Performance Strategy Ladder, available only at issue, is a multi-tier strategy tied to participation rates on certain indices.
The six available indices — S&P 500, S&P 500 Distance Stabilizer Index, S&P PRISM Index, Loomis Sayles Managed Futures 2 Index, NYSE GEARS Index, and Research Affiliates Global Multi-Asset Index — span a range from well-known benchmark to volatility-managed and multi-asset designs. Some of these specialty indices carry embedded index costs that can reduce how much of the stated participation or cap translates into credited interest, so the broader menu comes with added complexity. Participation rates available range from 50% to 210% and caps from 5% to 30% as of the brochure date, though rates are subject to change at each renewal.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The optional Retirement Benefits Rider bundles three things: a Guaranteed Lifetime Withdrawal Benefit for income, an Enhanced Death Benefit, and an Activities of Daily Living benefit for chronic illness situations — all for a single 0.50% annual fee. That bundled pricing is worth noting because most products charge separately for each of these, which can quickly add 0.75% to 1.25% in total rider fees on competing contracts.
The income roll-up is structured as 150% of interest credited to the account annually. That means the benefit base grows only when the underlying account earns interest. In years where index crediting is zero — which can happen in flat or negative markets — the benefit base does not grow either. That is a meaningful constraint compared to products with a fixed 5% to 8% guaranteed compound roll-up. Whether this matters to a specific buyer depends on how much of their retirement plan depends on this contract's income stream.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
The contract allows 10% of the beginning-of-year accumulation value to be withdrawn annually without penalty, beginning after contract year 1. That provision covers most RMD needs for qualified accounts and lets systematic savers take modest annual distributions throughout the surrender period.
Withdrawals above the free amount during the 7-year period are subject to surrender charges and a Market Value Adjustment (MVA) — the MVA means your effective surrender penalty can fluctuate with interest rate movements, not just the stated charge. The Nursing Home Confinement Waiver allows 100% withdrawal without surrender charges if confined to a qualified nursing facility, which provides meaningful protection against forced early exit in a care situation.
| Contract Year | Surrender Charge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 9% |
| 2 | 8% |
| 3 | 7% |
| 4 | 6% |
| 5 | 5% |
| 6 | 4% |
| 7 | 3% |
Fees and Tradeoffs
The base contract has no explicit annual fee. The tradeoffs are structural: upside is limited by caps or participation rates, and some index options include embedded costs that reduce the effective return before the carrier applies its crediting formula.
If you elect the Retirement Benefits Rider, you pay 0.50% annually. Certain crediting methods in the enhanced strategy tiers also carry a Strategy Charge that varies by strategy — the brochure does not specify amounts, so ask for the current strategy charge disclosure if you are comparing this against a simpler cap-only approach. The MVA on surrenders adds a variable element to early exit costs that the stated schedule alone does not fully capture.
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Product Type | Fixed Indexed Annuity |
| Surrender Period | 7 years |
| Issue Ages | 0-85 |
| Minimum Premium | $25,000 |
| Indices | S&P 500, S&P 500 Distance Stabilizer Index, S&P PRISM Index, Loomis Sayles Managed Futures 2 Index, NYSE GEARS Index, Research Affiliates Global Multi-Asset Index |
| Crediting Methods | Fixed rate, Annual point-to-point with participation rate, Annual point-to-point with cap rate, Performance Strategy Ladder with participation rate |
| Free Withdrawal | 10% of beginning of year accumulation value, annually, penalty-free after contract year 1 |
| MGSV | 87.5% of premiums at 1-3% |
| Death Benefit | Greater of account value plus appreciation-to-date OR Minimum Guaranteed Surrender Value |
| Income Rider | Optional |
| Income Rider Fee | 0.50% |
| Premium Bonus | None |
| Availability | Not available in MA, NJ, WA for Retirement Benefits Rider; NY not approved |
Carrier snapshot
Legal Entity: North American Company for Life and Health Insurance
Parent: Sammons Financial Group
A.M. Best Rating: A+
North American Company for Life and Health Insurance carries an A+ rating from A.M. Best, which is among the strongest in the fixed indexed annuity space. Sammons Financial Group is a privately held parent, meaning the carrier operates outside the pressures of public equity markets. That is not a differentiating factor for most buyers, but it contributes to long-term stability expectations.
Final take
Secure Horizon Choice 7 is a well-constructed 7-year accumulation FIA from a carrier with strong financial ratings. The base contract is clean, the index menu is one of the broader ones available in this surrender band, and the optional rider bundle is priced efficiently for what it covers.
Where it falls short of a top-tier rating is the income design: the benefit base grows only when the account earns interest. For someone who needs predictable income accumulation, that structure introduces planning uncertainty. For someone who wants a principal-protected accumulation vehicle with the option to add income and care benefits later, this is a strong fit. For someone whose income plan depends on steady benefit base growth, look at products with a fixed guaranteed roll-up rate instead.