by John Darer® CLU ChFC CSSC RSP
The Structured Settlement Watchdog® has barked about merchants of secondary market and tertiary market structured settlement payments rights calling them annuities due to the downright inaccuracy when soliciting investors. Today I was surprised to receive the following email from an investment adviser from Colorado
"Good morning,
Is this MetLife? I am interested in more information about secondary market annuities. I understand MetLife offers this product. Can you please send me a phone number to call to discuss with a sales rep.
Thank you".
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A MetLife company home office representative from its structured settlement operations, who I spoke to on June 29, 2012, stated categorically that MetLife IS NOT in the business of marketing secondary market structured settlement payment rights.
I've repeatedly pointed out in this structured settlement blog that transferred structured settlement payment rights are not an annuity. Despite this, some merchants of structured settlement payment rights advertise them as such on their websites, in emails and in other solicitation materials.
There is currently no licensing required to broker the sale of them to others and non-existent regulation of the secondary market broker advertising.It's part of the reason that even the financial adviser who sent me the email this morning was confused.
Merchants (in some cases paid mercenaries on behalf of those structured settlements rights merchants) can literally say or do anything, operate through anonymous websites, operate off shore or with a U.S.domestic presence that could only hold a notional amount of mail (UPS store mailboxes).
The other day I reported about someone who was blatantly mischaracterized as a Harvard educated "structured settlement legend" in 2010 to solicit the "Average Joe" who doesn't appear to exist except perhaps in the mind of a Tufts educated nutritionist and blogger from Massachusetts
Have a great weekend folks. It's hot out there!
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