Litigation

Way back my Northwestern Mutual general agent, Gerald N. Gilberg used to say that "you can't sell what you don't own", the rationale being that it's easier to ask for the premium on $1,000,000 of life insurance* if you own it yourself. While a certain amount of this enabled Gilberg to build a significant annuity off each new recruiting class, the theory actually represented some sage advice. Yet in the structured settlement industry we can't sample any of the product you we sell, OR CAN'T WE?

I'd love to be a fly on the wall when a few industry old timers read this, but we CAN sample our own product through the ethical players in the secondary market and I opine that by "by doing so" you can do your part to :

1. Help tort victims, annuitants and lottery winners get a much much better deal; and
2. Act as a catalyst to drive down discount rates and provide a direct threat to opportunists in the factoring industry who "lie in wait" for ignorant, lazy people who do not know how to shop to keep getting 18% discount rates when much better deals are available.

At this point it is generally accepted that factoring is sometimes necessary due to lack of available financing alternatives. Those who think otherwise are kidding themselves. An estimate based on JG Wentworth's bankruptcy filing last year and its April 2010 securitization press release implies that less than 5% of all structures are factored.  Why not seek to help some of the less than 5%?

The trade associations and members have spent years concerned about primarily two things:

1. Abusive advertising

2. Abusive discount rates

   As Thornton Melon (left) once said in a commencement speech "Got to look out for number 1, but don't step in number 2". 

How about it? Let's help these folks to NOT STEP in "number 2"!

* in the days when $1,000,000 life insurance was considered a large number