Elizabeth Warren Exposes How Financial Advisers Exploit Retirees for "Villas, Castles & Vacations"

[kpete]

Elizabeth Warren Exposes How Financial Advisers Exploit Retirees
It's legal for them to choose free vacations over their clients' interests.

Retirees across America look to financial advisers for help in navigating options for smart retirement saving. But there's a scary fact many folks don't know when they entrust their life savings to a broker. According to a report released by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) last week, many financial advisers promote inferior financial products to collect kickbacks—from pricey Caribbean vacations to gift cards and golf outings—offered by the companies that sell certain annuities. And what's worse, that practice is totally legal.

The study, called "Villas, Castles, and Vacations: How Perks and Giveaways Create Conflicts of Interest in the Annuity Industry," points out that loopholes in various rules from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, state insurance departments, and other agencies allow this practice to continue. The tainted financial advice costs Americans about $17 billion every year.

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Here are more examples of the types of perks that companies revealed to Warren's office:

In 2015, American Equity offered the top sellers of its products a trip to San Francisco for agents "and their guests." In 2014, the company offered top-selling agents a trip to Disney World. Children of sales agents who had sold an extra $600,000 worth of American Equity products traveled for free.
For its agents who sell more than $3.5 million worth of Athene products, the company is offering a 2016 trip to a conference in Aruba, with accommodations at the RitzCarlton.
Fidelity Guarantee and Life offered top agents a trip to the company's Power Producer Conference at the Four Seasons Resort in Punta Mita, Mexico.
American National offered its top-performing agents and their guests a five-day, four-night stay at the Cove Atlantis on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/11/elizabeth-warren-financial-advisers-retirees-kickbacks-vacations

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Finally someone names names.

Yes this is such a pervasive practice,and if you do sign on the line with these folks and you figure out how badly you were scammed,and you want to change or cancel your relationship with one of these firms,good luck,yes you can transfer your holdings to another firm,but,that is when the foot dragging begins. Chances are,you will get a hair cut and it is all legal. You sure as hell are not going to be made whole,these suckers have bullet proofed themselves by using arbitration and you can all I will say is good luck. Notice M J did not mention Ameriprize or Schwab. Many so called Tax Preparers offer these sam e products and receive the same spiffs.

[99th_Monkey]

2. Investors have a better chance at winning in Las Vegas than with Wall St. -nt-