Amid the doom and gloom of economic predictions for the year ahead some providers of innovative guaranteed products in the pensions and investment markets may have more reason to be cheerful than the rest of us.

Having witnessed the success of such products in the US and Japan, providers have decided that the time was right to launch products in the UK. The products are aimed at providing guaranteed capital or income returns and are primarily designed for those seeking to take advantage of these guarantees as part of their retirement planning.

The guaranteed income products have been labelled “the third way” and are seen as bridging the gap between annuities and income drawdown, but variants have been launched which can accept both pension and non-pension monies.

After a quiet start to life in the UK arena a period of uncertain investment markets could herald an associated growth in the use of these guaranteed products as investors seek to bring some certainty to their portfolio.

For those seeking to lock-in investment growth experienced during the long running bull markets a capital guarantee may well appeal, while those planning their financial needs in retirement may well wish to underpin their portfolio with a guaranteed level of income return.

The early focus on these products has been on the cost and the perceived complexity of the guarantee facility meaning that education of the IFA and their client has been high on the list of duties for early market movers.

Further big name entrants to the market will however add fuel to this product area but again investment market difficulties may provide the underlying impetus for a growth in recommendations of this type of product.

The key to success for providers in the market will be to convince IFAs and their clients of the worth of the guarantee but they may well be given some help here through the attention grabbing influence of market conditions.