Dateline Undercover on right now

[Crabcake Johnny]

The Jag drivers weren't the worse. Anytime someone drove up in a Volvo you could see a cloud of dust as we all headed out for lunch.

 

[Mr. Bill]

Scarry. I once had a client who effectively wiped out the last of her IRA (that is, after she quit working, refused to get a job, went to the bar on a daily basis, etc.) to hire an attorney to represent her son at his hearing. Took 20 minutes and $8,000. Son was guilty anyway. Fired her. The parents who are "bailing out their son" should take a good hard look at their future and allow him to get Legal Aid or a PD. Once an attorney for hire knows there's a pipeline to more money, they will do whatever it takes to get it all. I know of people who have mortgaged their homes to bail out their adult children for crimes they knew they were guilty of. Why? How shameful is it for a parent to do the best that they can teaching the child how to behave as an adult, and if the child chooses otherwise, it's Real World Time.

Remember the 13-year old kid in Florida who killed his cousin because he'd been watching some kickboxing/fighting shows on tv and was practicing his moves? That was horrific. I think that kid (now an adult) is still in jail.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Actually, the statement should be closer to "insurance agents in general receive "iffy" training....

I've long believed that most insurance agents do not have enough product knowledge and should not be involved with selling. I sit in occasional seminars with other agents and ever time am amazed how these people can be in the business, many for 30, 40 or more years. The ignorance about products is astounding. You should hear these idiots talk about HSAs and Med Supps. Amazing!
Rick

I've sat in company training sessions before where the rep didn't know what they were talking about.

The Assurant self-funded small grp session was almost embarrassing. They had agency owners from around MD listening to this Assurant rep go on about how fully underwritten self-funded plans were the way to go.

During the Q&A the senior agents ate him for lunch. It was painful to watch. I attended both Aetna and GR sessions in MD - neither rep could answer a few targeted questions. The GR company rep tried to go over HSAs - I felt bad for him.

 

[slushhhpuppie]

I've never seen so much ignorance and arrogance from the same person.

Congrats! I think you may have set the record

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

20 yr CD...? Maybe some crap that the wirehouses might sell that are redeemable on the secondary mkt, traded much like a Treasury Note or Bond. There have been loads of folks crammed into these type of CD's by their Securities Broker and the vast majority of those would have been much better off with the annuity; (and I am not an annuity guy either).

This whole discussion comes down to integrity. When advising an individual, whether that is on financial matters, (all types of investments and asset protection, including health, life and liability insurance), or advice of another nature, there is going to be good, bad and ugly advice rendered. One size does not fit all not matter the conversation. Simply put, there are competents and incompetents in all fields of life and that equates to good and less than good direction offered for clients, patients or whatever the relationship. The general broad brush painting assumptions that poor advice is being rendered ends up being both right and wrong.

In over 25yrs of finacnial services I have known some excellent advisors, some from the securities field, other insurance and yet others from the fee only base. At the same time, I have seen poor advisors in all those same venues; just no absolutes to conclude that a securities type offers better advice than an insurance type. This all comes back to the integrity and skill of the advisor, whatever their main calling happens to be; (investments, insurance, advice for a fee, etc).

And with that, the dead horse lives on...

That's a great post and it will always come down to the individual however I feel the carriers have a duty to directly train their agents and not pawn it off on their GAs, IMOs, FMOs, etc...

 

[Mr. Bill]

And sadly, it doesn't really matter how many financial "gurus" are out there or how many books there are available, there will always be the unsuspecting public or people in denial, who will work at and put 100% of their life savings in Enron, watch it blow up, and blame somebody else.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I've never seen so much ignorance and arrogance from the same person.

Congrats! I think you may have set the record

I don't believe I made a personal comment towards you. If you lack debating skills due to anything - low IQ of whatever have you then I recommend you not engage further in this thread. I don't have to attack anyone personally to get my point across. Debating means there's two sides of an argument. Realizing that there are different points of view makes you a more centered person. It's why you don't see me getting all upset and personal on this thread since there's merit to many things that have been said.

 

[Dave020]

I sit in occasional seminars with other agents and ever time am amazed how these people can be in the business, many for 30, 40 or more years. The ignorance about products is astounding.

I quit going to RSM seminars a few years ago for exactly this reason. The questions asked were often so basic and pointless.

 

[slushhhpuppie]

I don't believe I made a personal comment towards you. If you lack debating skills due to anything - low IQ of whatever have you then I recommend you not engage further in this thread. I don't have to attack anyone personally to get my point across. Debating means there's two sides of an argument. Realizing that there are different points of view makes you a more centered person. It's why you don't see me getting all upset and personal on this thread since there's merit to many things that have been said.

Thanks for the recommendation, but I'm just fine. If you can't take the heat, then stop pontificating on a public forum.

After reading your posts, I would say that you are suffering from severe oxygen depravation. Try taking your head our of your @

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Listen, we're going back and forth in a worthwhile debate - then I have to hear clever witty "you're a double-doody head" remarks from you. If you'd like, my 6 year old son gets home from kindergarten at 3pm. Maybe you two can call and trade insults