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Notes Payable (Repurchase Agreements Narrative) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2015	Mar. 31, 2014
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Repurchase agreement, maximum amount borrowed	$ 40.6ael_RepurchaseAgreementMaximumAmountBorrowed	$ 138.7ael_RepurchaseAgreementMaximumAmountBorrowed
Repurchase agreement, average borrowings	$ 1.9ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageBorrowings	$ 27.5ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageBorrowings
Repurchase agreement, weighted average interest rate	0.39%ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageInterestRate	0.15%ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageInterestRate

X

- Definition

The average amount borrowed during the reporting period on repurchase agreements.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageBorrowings
Namespace Prefix:	ael_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

The average rate of interest paid on the amount borrowed on securities repurchase agreements during the period.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	ael_RepurchaseAgreementAverageInterestRate
Namespace Prefix:	ael_
Data Type:	num:percentItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

The maximum amount borrowed on repurchase agreements during the reporting period.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	ael_RepurchaseAgreementMaximumAmountBorrowed
Namespace Prefix:	ael_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	duration

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DebtDisclosureAbstract
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration