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Honest Advice on Annuities Available Online for
Senior Citizens
Mass mailing by American Senior Alliance, National
Processing Center create concern; help found at ElderLawAnswers
 March
24, 2005 – No stories ever carried by SeniorJournal.com have created as
much response as the articles pertaining to the American Senior Alliance
and National Processing Center, names used by mass mailers seeking
annuity clients among senior citizens. The mailings are disguised as
free offers of information on “new” government benefits for seniors and
usually ask for a phone number and signature on a return card.
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Jan. 3, 2005 – Those mysterious cards going to
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Center that offer information on enticing financial opportunities are
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“National Processing Center” Appears to Replace
“American Senior Alliance”
Dec. 14, 2004 – Last month we warned seniors to be
wary of a mailing from the American Senior Alliance that made outlandish
promises of information available about “important Elder Law changes.”
Now, there is a new mailing to seniors with even more promises and the
return address is to the National Processing Center. We are reporting
both to the U.S. Postal Inspectors for investigation.
More... 12/14/04*
American Senior Alliance Should Be Viewed With
Caution
Nov. 30, 2004 - SeniorJournal.com has received many
emails concerning a mailing to senior citizens by the American Senior
Alliance, but no one has been able to locate this company, which make
excessively enticing promises in the mailing.
More... 11/30/04*
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Our associates at ElderLawAnswers.com have allowed
us to reprint an article they carried that provides information that is
very useful for senior citizens who receive these mailing or just want
to know more about annuities.
Following is their article:
New Web Site
Combats Annuity Sales Abuses
By:
ElderLawAnswers.com
Last updated: Jul 22, 2002
An article in the Wall Street Journal earlier this
month described a training session at "Annuity University," which bills
itself as the "nation's first and foremost Annuity Sales Training
School." Included in training session advice on how to sell annuities to
seniors was the following: “Treat them like they’re blind 12-year-olds .
. .”; "There's the technical answer," . . . and "there's the senior
answer”; and "Tell them you can protect their life savings from
nursing-home and Medicaid seizure of assets. They don't know what that
is, but it sounds scary."
Across the nation, the elderly are being targeted
by salespeople selling annuity products. For some seniors, an annuity
may be an appropriate part of an overall financial plan. But for others
an annuity is totally unsuitable. Often, as the above high-pressure
sales tactics attest, people are not being told in a clear way about all
aspects of the annuities they are being offered.
To help older adults and families make better
decisions about annuities, the
Healthcare and Elder Law Programs Corporation (H.E.L.P.) has created
a new Web site,
annuitytruth.org. The site features H.E.L.P.’s new seven-part
“Special Report: Annuities and Older Adults,” as well as a list of
federal and state agency contacts for making complaints if a person has
been sold an annuity in unsuitable circumstances. Note that the site
refers to “Medi-Cal,” which is the name for Medicaid in California,
where the site was created.
H.E.L.P., which is a community-funded, non-profit
information resource for older adults, offers the following list of
circumstances in which the purchase of a deferred annuity by an older
adult is highly questionable:
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The annuity has surrender charges for longer
than six years.
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You are likely to need principal back from the
annuity while surrender charges will apply.
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You are being told that it will help you
protect assets under the Medi-Cal (Medicaid) nursing home rules.
-
The salesperson will not tell you how much he
or she will earn from selling you the annuity.
-
The salesperson will earn a commission greater
than four percent.
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The annuity will be purchased and held within
an IRA or other tax-deferred account.
-
The annuity will be purchased with money that
you withdraw from an IRA or other tax-deferred account.
-
You don't need to pay income taxes (with or
without the annuity).
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You're being asked to convert a high percentage
of your assets into deferred annuities.
-
The annuity is a variable annuity, and you are
unable to leave the principal untouched for 15 or more years.
For more information, click here to email
ElderLawAnswers.com
To learn more about the law and senior citizens, go
to
ElderLawAnswers.com
To find the above article on the
ElderLawAnswers.com Website –
Click Here
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