Seniors Still at Risk for Life Insurance, Annuity Fraud Schemes
By John Curran
After retirement funds were decimated in the recession that began in 2008, many baby boomers and their parents had to reassess how they would pay the bills once they stopped working. Now, life insurance fraud lawyers are warning families that they may be the victims of hucksters.
Two of the major avenues for safe investing include annuities and life insurance. In the former, seniors pay a set amount as principal, and the financial services firm guarantees a set payment either on a term basis or for the life of an aging American. Many people may not realize, however, that there are penalties involved with taking out any money early, known as surrender fees. In the case of a medical emergency, only a fraction of the total amount invested may be available.
Annuities fraud relies on financial advisers that do not warn retirees that these risks and penalties may exact a toll on their savings. In addition, many unscrupulous annuities salesmen try to tie up as much of a senior citizen’s assets as possible. Especially with deferred annuities, this enables the company to make money using the principal to invest while not extending the same rewards to seniors.
Similar issues exist for people who may now need to consult with life insurance fraud lawsuit lawyers. Some financial advisers seek to try and get aging Americans to roll over their policies into a new one, sometimes by promising a better interest rate or payout. However, this often prolongs the amount of time before beneficiaries can get the payments are due to them.
In either case, annuities fraud lawsuits will continue to be filed. In 2011, a number of Arizona seniors sued National Future Benefits Unlimited, alleging that the company sold annuities with excessive surrender fees for early withdrawals or significantly impacted their budgets due to tax penalties.
Annuities fraud lawyers say that a significant portion of their clientele have suffered from fraudulent investment scams based on life insurance policies or annuities fraud. If you or someone you know lost a significant portion of your retirement funds, you may have been affected by a financial services firm that failed to properly advise you of the risks and benefits involved with any plans. Learn more about your legal options when you visit the Life Insurance, Annuities Fraud Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. You can fill out the short form there for a free legal consultation.
All class action and lawsuit news updates are listed in the Lawsuit News section of Top Class Actions
