Notes Payable and Amounts Due Under Repurchase Agreements (Repurchase Agreements Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Repurchase agreement, average borrowings	$ 14.3	$ 33.0	$ 51.8
Repurchase agreement, maximum amount borrowed	$ 186.4	$ 243.6	$ 544.1
Repurchase agreement, weighted average interest rate	1.73%	2.99%	1.90%

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