by John Darer CLU ChFC CSSC RSP
The other day I was involved in a trivia contest at a local restaurant and astounded that one of my fellow contestants was really stymied by a series of questions seeking which President appears on a $50 Bill , a $20 Bill and a $10 Bill -the latter even after 2 clues!). I thought to myself "If people paid more "attention" to their money they'd probably have more of it!"
Which brings me to my "shriek of the week" involving a structured settlement broker. In this instance, a problem persists which I have reported in the past several times. A structured settlement broker who targets trial lawyers, who unfortunately has a history of cutting corners that is a matter of public record, continues to display misinformation on the Internet.
I can't stress enough the importance of keeping the financial literacy bar high in the structured settlement industry. Let's face it, looks fade over time. Like the old adage says "Sometimes it's better to keep your mouth shut and let other people believe you're a fool than to open it up and remove all doubt".
The broker's website page states:
"Structured settlement payments are funded by either a life insurance company annuity or a US Treasury bond – two of the safest funding sources available. Structured settlements are funded through multi-billion dollar life insurance companies with strong financial ratings from AM Best, Fitch, Standard & Poors, Moody’s and Weiss".
Comments
- A permissible qualified funding asset, as set forth in IRC 130(d), is either an annuity or an obligation of the United States government
- A structured annuity is issued by a life insurance company
- A Treasury Bond is issued by, well…duh, The United States Treasury!
- Despite all the government bailout money and insurance company investment it has made, the United States Treasury is not an insurance company.
- When a United States Treasury bond or TIPS are used as a qualified funding asset, such assets are held in trust.
- Does A.M. Best rate the financial strength or creditworthiness of the United States Treasury?
- I'm going to challenge readers with a little contest to add some intrigue. I'm not going to name the individual/company in question in this post. I challenge readers to figure out who it is. If you do, please call or email me privately.
If certain people paid more "attention" to the fundamentals and intellectual capital of their business, they'd probably have more of it.
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