Notes Payable and Amounts Due Under Repurchase Agreements (Repurchase Agreements Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Repurchase agreement, average borrowings	$ 20.4	$ 111.4	$ 54.6	$ 59.8
Repurchase agreement, maximum amount borrowed			$ 243.6	$ 544.1
Repurchase agreement, weighted average interest rate	4.62%	1.74%	3.04%	1.74%

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

No definition available.

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