What Are Annuity Surrender Charges? 
That is a great question ! The idea behind a deferred annuity is that it sits for a period of time so that the money can grow . While your money is in that account growing , the insurance company is counting on it to make investments with , and if you pull that money early it defeats the purpose , so the company charges you for doing it . These charges are the surrender charges . They are usually highest in the first year that you have the annuity , and lessen as time goes on , until you have reached the contracted limit . These fees often start at 10 % , so they can be very costly . Hopefully your agent explained this to you very clearly , and did a suitability study with you before you bought the annuity . I hope this helps , if you have questions , please drop me a line , okay ? Thanks for asking ! 