by Structured Settlement Watchdog
Woodbridge Structured Funding, LLC (nee Woodbridge Investments) apparently has a different type of clientele than J.G. Wentworth. Woodbridge says it has 17 years of experience and has "examined the psychology" of its structured settlement sellers to map out their common traits.
According to Woodbridge:
- People who sell annuity payments are typically good at saving Woodbridge says "If you are planning to sell annuity payments for a lump sum on (sic) money, chances are that you have been saving for a while and know that if you receive all of the money now, you’ll have it for a while".
- People who sell annuity payments are typically day dreamers .Woodbridge says "People often sell their payments to peruse (sic) life-long (sic) dreams they never thought possible before. When you sell a payment and receive a very large sum on money (sic), suddenly the world is at your feet and you can accomplish all your dreams. This is an opportunity that is extremely valuable and unfortunately does not come around that often. The ideas come flooding in as soon as a person with an annuity hears the amount they could receive up front".
- People who sell annuity payments are typically generous. Woodbridge says "You may have always dreamed of re-paying your parents for taking care of and providing for you, or would love to give your loved ones special and expensive gifts.
In a 2008 "survey", J.G. Wentworth asked a non statistical sample of its sellers "Why did you sell all or part of your structured settlement?"
Responses:
- Pay bills – 60.2%
- Start a business – 8.3%
- Home improvement – 8.3%
- Pay for education – 5.6%
- Cash made more sense than waiting – 5.6%
- Buy a house – 4.6%
The follow up question was " Did selling your structured settlement help solve your financial problem?"
Responses:
- Mostly – 40.7%
- Yes – 32.4%
- Only helped a little – 21.3%
- No, it did not help – 5.6%
Source: S2KM Blog December 1, 2008
The structured settlement watchdog doesn't place much credibility in anything Woodbridge says and in his opinion neither should you.
1. We previously exposed how Woodbridge posted about selling structured settlement payments to help pay for college and then apparently populated its own comments with links back to the company website.
August 2008 Download Woodbridge Investments College w Anonymous Self Serving Comments
2. 2007 Download Woodbridge "Premier Tier Promotion" in which they effectively "bribe "customers to do business with Plasma TVs, Cruises and a Mercedes Benz awards based on amount sold. Download Contest
3. September 2007 direct solicitation to structured settlement and lottery recipients offering a 42 inch Plasma TV if they sold a minimum of 3 payments with minimum value Download Woodbridge Investments Plasma TV Incentives to Factor Structured Settlements Scott Schwartz
4. We also previously reported about how, during the very same week of the financial bailout of AIG in 2008, the Woodbridge "vultures" issued a press release with the headline "AIG Financial Trouble Drives Demand for Woodbridge Investments". Whether or not the statement was factually correct is irrelevant to this discussion. It is clear, at the very least in this author's view, that it was designed to capitalize on real or irrational paranoia. A gap left in Federal and State legislation allowed a sales approach that would have been condemned as illegal by any insurance regulator. As we know AIG is still in business as are its structured settlement annuity underwiting subsidiaries. It's stock price is reaching for 20 times what is was at the nadir. AIG's underwriting subisidiaries that offer structured settlements have paid, and aside from a name change, the result of a December 31, 2010 merger between two New York subsidiaries , continue to pay structured settlement annuitants.
Further comments
Structured settlement annuitants may have a need for liquidity that cannot be satisfied from another source. Members of the settlement purchasing industry provide such liquidity and unfortunately the absence of regulatory oversight concerning solicitation of annuitants, permits companies like Woodbridge to push the envelope.
The most ridiculous Woodbridge comment is that ideas come flooding in as soon as annuitant hears the amount they could receive. Perhaps it would be better to say it's shock but NOT awe? Please remember that if you decide to sell all or a portion of your structured settlement payment rights to a company like Woodbridge, you are doing so at a discount.
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