Posted by The Policy Settlement Alliance on Fri, Aug 13, 2010 @ 10:03 AM
By Scott J. Dressel
Within the life settlement industry life settlement ethics are at the forefront. Less than 30 years ago a new industry was emerging for people who were diagnosed terminally ill and who needed to get to their life insurance death benefit proceeds before actual death to help offset medical expenses and add to quality of life in their remaining years or days. This industry was known as the viatical settlement industry and gained momentum when the AIDS epidemic first surfaced. During this time as with the majority of new industries there was unintentional and unfortunately intentional abuse. Since then the life settlement industry has matured and has embraced reform and regulation with the foundation of life settlement ethics. There is even a well respected Life Insurance Settlement Association which is known as “the voice of the industry” and their website can be visited by both brokers and the consumer at www.thevoiceoftheindustry.com the site under the Governance tab post life settlement ethics under the title “Code of Ethics”. For more information and a free policy evaluation please click on the LIVEpdq link today!
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Wed, Jun 30, 2010 @ 09:07 AM
By Blaine M. Ferguson
Life settlement ethics are a subject that has been addressed by regulators, the media and life insurance professionals. While some industry professionals may have chosen to act unethically, the overwhelming majority of life settlement professionals act ethically in the best interest of their clients. These advisors have been guided by legislation, transparency and the need to apply a fiduciary standard of care that their individual certifications may require.
In 2001, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners released the Model Viatical Settlements Act which acted as model legislation for the regulations later adopted by many states. This act offered guidelines that help to protect policy owners from fraudulent and unethical business practices.
States with large senior populations, such as Florida and California, saw it necessary to protect policy owners and enacted strict legislation that has helped to provide a set of standards followed by many of those in the industry.
Along with legislation, the secondary life insurance market began to grow and receive a great deal of attention. As institutional investors saw life insurance as a way to diversify their portfolios and reduce risk, the amount of competition for life insurance policies started to increase, which in turn offered a chance to receive offers for settlements that were more competitive and transparent.
Life settlement ethics have also been bolstered by the obligation of advisors to maintain a fiduciary standard of care with their clients as set forth by the certifications they maintain. A registered investment advisor for instance, is obligated to act in his clients best interest.
While there are other factors that have influence life settlement ethics, we can see how the industry as a whole has become more transparent and increasingly competitive.
For more information on life settlement ethics, or to have your policy reviewed please visit LivePDQ
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 @ 10:04 PM
by
Stephen P Turtur
Life settlement ethics
is a very important aspect of the life insurance settlement business and the life insurance business as a whole. The question has been asked of me as to how the insurance companies feel about the rights that people have to sell their insurance to a third party. Insurable interest is a requirement that must be met in order to own a policy on the life of another. It's also an amount of insurance that can be written on a persons life pertaining to their net worth and situation. Life settlement ethics can be ethics to include more than just disclosure and honesty to the client. To answer the question of the insurance companies perspective of the settlement business and life settlement ethics I am sure they have a great interest in making sure the client is making his or her right decision. Life settlement ethics should be positioned with this in mind. The objective of the insured or owner usually will dictate if the position is to sell his or her policy;however, I feel sure the insurance companies would welcome the policy staying in a position of not having a third party type of ownership. The subject of life settlement thus becomes the right of the insured/owner and if he or she feels the transaction is in their best interest. Life settlement ethics should be present in a form of providing the service of obtaining the offer to purchase and the decision must rest with the insured/owners as to if they feel it solves their objective.
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Posted by Alice Hood on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 @ 09:58 PM
By Stephen A. Bailey
Is Life Settlement ethics
just offering the same uniform process to every client. I like to think it's more than that and let count the ways. Each client regardless of the size of the sale should receive the same care and urgency in a quick transaction, as rapidly as possible. Keep in mind that this can take several months in some cases, but the care is in not just dropping the cases and putting it on the back burner.
Follow-up is so important on all transactions. Brokers with life settlement ethics need to look for superior offers, not just the next offer just because it may be a faster buck for all parties to the deal. Customer service is paramount to an ethical transaction, at all times. Sources of capital funding must be ethical sources, usually of large institutional investors. Pricing needs to be competitive with other brokers.
Pricing calculations and operating process, and the time it takes are all under life settlement ethics consideration. keep in mind that there may not be a legitimate buyer for your policy, even though you as a client would like to sell it. It happens even with the best of brokers, even when they do a great job for the client and for the advisor who brought the clients. Using life settlement ethics does not guarantee sales, but it gives the client the best possible chance for success.
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Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 @ 09:47 PM
by
Stephen P Turtur
Life settlement ethics
is a very important aspect of the life settlement business and the insurance business as a whole. The question has been asked of me of how the insurance companies feel about the rights that people have to sell their life insurance to a third party. Insurable interest is a requirement that must be met in order to own an insurance policy on the life of another. It is also the amount of insurance that can be written on an individuals life. Life settlement ethics can be ethics to include more than just disclosure to the client. To answer the question as to how insurance companies feel about a person or entity selling a life insurance policy or their perspective of this type of transaction, I'm sure like the agent advisor having ethics, the insurance companies probably wish to make sure the sale is the right thing to do-the right decision. Life settlement ethics on behalf of the agent/advisor should approach this subject with the client both from figurative standpoint as well as making sure the client understands that this can not be revoked and that his or her financial decision may involve more than just an amount of money. When selling a life insurance policy make sure your agent/advisor has an interest in asking you questions pertaining to your overall situation so that the ethics of your selling a policy is covered.
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Posted by Alice Hood on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 @ 07:11 PM
By Stephen A. Bailey
Life settlement ethics, are they established? And, what is ethical and what is not? As long as the client who wants to sell his policy, knows from the beginning whether it is a good idea or not, that is the basis for ethical thinking. Once it is decided that a life settlement is in his best interest, than the foundation for a transaction is set to build upon, ethically. It starts not only with the client getting the best monetary settlement he can, but with the client knowing that it is the best thing for him to do.
Full disclosure is the name of the game on all settlements, all transactions, otherwise life settlement ethics are not being practiced. Fairness to all parties in the transaction is ethical. I have worked with a firm that has been doing settlements and financing for nearly 34 years. They are one of the first in the country in the Secondary Market and have even helped with setting policy relative to the transaction from beginning to end.
Life settlement ethics is not just in the transaction......it is in the agent's best interest to do follow up with their clients to see if they should be selling a policy, that has no longer a place in the client's portfolio. He needs to be in a responsible fiduciary capacity at all times and make sure he is handling all his client needs ethically and that includes making decisions on the client's life insurance that are always in his best interest.
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Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Mon, Jun 28, 2010 @ 03:24 PM
By Michael P Perog
Life Settlement Ethics
has changed for the better over the past 5 years for buyers and sellers alike. Now that the business has become more “mature” as an asset class all parties are generally disclosing all information at the closing table.
Life settlement ethics includes the seller having to disclose all information about the policies and the buyer having to disclosing all fees, directing the buyer to review the contracts and discussing possible repercussions to the sale of the policy.
Certain states have regulations that are different than other states so that all of those individual requirements must be met differently from state to state.
There are billions of dollars a year of life settlements that are being completed to benefit all parties involved. All of these volumes of transactions make it better and easier for future buyers and sellers to negotiate fair prices and close the cases smoother.
To get more information about Life Settlement Ethics, click on the Livepdq link.
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Fri, Jun 25, 2010 @ 04:31 PM
By Marlin E Leisher
Life settlement ethics, just a few years ago left many producers after some soul searching, finding that their personal life settlement ethics were very fragile and persuadable. The excuse that we heard often was that the other producers keep large commissions so why not me. He uses this to justify the fact that he just committed a life settlement ethics white collar crime by collecting half of his clients settlement return.
Today we call that greed and with the change in the law it is now called illegal. We all like the thought that our agent has life settlement ethics and we can just as easily say that back when we believed in the tooth fairy, never-the-less people are people.
Today is a better day do to the massive change of laws for the people and due to the public outrage looking for life settlement ethics to be consistent not to mention the long string of lawsuits has forced everyone to clean-up their act and try to make amends for past wrong doings. Click the Live PDQ button to see if a life settlement is right for you.
For more information please visit our LIVEpdq in the upper right image.
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Fri, Jun 25, 2010 @ 04:31 PM
By: Amie M Wirth
In an industry that deals with the elderly life settlement ethics are an important part of doing business..
The life settlement ethics are important in keeping the industry as a whole moving forward and out of trouble with the regulatory bodies in the states that business is transacted.
Although the funders are really the entities that are regulating the amount of commissions that a life settlement agents and life settlement brokers can receive on any one file.
Another life settlement ethics issue would be if a client should sell their policy at all. There are times when selling the life insurance policy may not be in the best interests of the insured and there are no regulatory bodies that deal with that issue. Although there are no regulations in place we like others in the industry have made it a priority to work with the client and help them decide if a life settlement is truly right for them.
For a long time many agents and laypeople did not want to deal with life settlements because they saw the life settlement market as one that was taking advantage of the elderly, because of the perceived lack of life settlement ethics and because the life insurance companies did everything in their power to dissuade agents and potential clients from entering into a life settlement transaction.
Our hope is that as the industry matures we are able to work on all the potential life settlement ethics issues and make an industry that is beyond reproach. If you are interested in seeing if a life settlement is right for you please click the Live PDQ button.
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.
Posted by Alice Hood on Fri, Jun 25, 2010 @ 02:29 PM
By Marlin E Leisher
Life settlement ethics is a big concern as the business grows and more and more clients, agents, brokers, and funders enter the scene.
The obvious life settlement eithics concern is that the majority of clients are seniors. Unfortunately there are those who prey on seniors’ vulnerabilities and fears. Looking forward, the life settlement ethics concern is that as the Settlement business grows, agents and brokers will get into the habit of convincing seniors to sell a policy they shouldn’t. Another life settlement ethics concern is that seniors will be convinced to sell a policy for much less than they should have or that the agent will take too large commission from the sale essentially stealing from the client.
Aging seniors should be aware of the terms of their policy or policies. They should understand the benefits and risks of a life settlement, the process they are entering in to, and who is involved. It is more important than ever that a senior considering a life settlement have an ethical agent who is using a reputable broker.
If you are a senior and you have questions about whether or not you could or should enter into a life settlement; click our Live PDQ button for answers.
Note: Blog posts reflect the opinion of the author, which may differ from the opinion of policysettlement.com.