A delivery driver for appliance Warehouse (AW) struck and killed a pedestrian in a crosswalk. The widow of the man killed has threatened to sue AW for wrongful death. AW's liability insurer would like to settle the case out-of-court to minimize legal defense costs and authorized AW to offer three settlement options:
Option 1: Five annual payments of $175,000, with the first payment in one year
Option 2: Four payments of $225,000, with the payments two years, four years, six years, eight years from today
Option 3: A payment of $300,000 today and $550,000 four years from today
Assume a 6% discount rate, which settlement option is best from the insurer's perspective?