Deferred Annuities Explained Deferred annuities mean that you are purchasing a contract and deferring income, payments or profits. Consequently, this is before you choose to do something with it. This may involve a stream of payments at a later date. Most noteworthy, most fixed and index annuities are deferred annuities. A deferred annuity is a type of annuity contract that delays payments of income, installments, or a lump sum until the investor elects to receive them and the contract is out of surrender. This type of annuity has two main phases: the savings phase also called the accumulation phase. These can include Fixed Annuities and Index Annuities. The second phase is usually the income phase, if you want this or if you have purchased a rider. Deferred
