Total Financial Group; Any Info?

[wacr53]

I am never amazed at how many agents will post incorrect information because they are afraid of the competition.

I checked into the Classic 105 and what I found out totally disproved what the other supposed "experts" posted previously.

First FACT: TTFG has obtained Legal Opinion Letters from a top ACA, ERISA and Business/Tax Law firms all of which CONFIRM that the program is 100% COMPLIANT and LEGAL! They even got positive commentary from the Chief Legal Council at the IRS.

Second FACT: ERISA performed an audit on the program (5 year pilot program) and it passed with flying colors.

Third FACT: Yes, there is a loan that backs up the employee's contribution to the plan and that loan is secured by a Credit Life Policy. That Loan gets paid back with interest when the employee dies. They never have to spend a cent out of pocket- ever!

The one thing I have learned in my 60+ years is that those who fight progress tend to lose. In this case, those "losers" appear to be the agents who have no option to compete with this. Why in the world would any employee want to to have their take-home pay reduced to contribute to an HSA (or other reimbursement account) that only provides a few thousand of "protection" when they can use the classic 105 and get more than Four Times the protection and no reduction in pay?

Am I going to offer this to my clients? Absolutely! If i don't, it is only a matter of time before those clients leave for this anyway.

 

[Key2Success]

I recently heard about the classic 105 plan from Total Financial Group, I was wondering if anyone here has any 1st hand experience with them and this program?

I had posted this in the Employee Benefit forum with little response so I thought I might try here.

I know the product quite well. If you have been focused on commercial insurance, this product is a no-brainer......a proverbial IQ test. Also, you won't find much if any help or information here since it's "not" an insurance product even though you do need to be licensed to bring your employer and employees into the program. If interested in additional information please send me a PM. Good luck.

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Your instincts are right.

I don't know how much you dug into this, but I studied it for several weeks.

The employee contributes around 1200 pretax dollars a month to the TPA for the health reimbursement plan. The TPA in turn gives the employee a non taxable weekly loan which is secured with a credit life policy on the employee.

Let's say for example the employee brings home an additional $75 per week because of the tax savings. Now the agent sells them a $50? GI life policy (or whatever product(s) they're selling) through payroll deduction.

The employee still brings home more money. The employer saves a bundle on FICA taxes. On a 100 life group, the agent walks away with enough commission to buy a new sports car.

Sound shady? It does to me.

In that case, why would a company agree to underwrite $1.5 Billion to cover the an initial 100,000 employee program?

Too good to be true? Or, too good to be ignored? Do your homework.....you're studying in the wrong places.....it's been working for over 5 years!

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SG;
I'm not looking to participate with this company, in fact they approached one of my clients recently who asked me to look into the "classic 105" plan.
From what I have read they are issuing these monthly loans with some vague promise that the loans are guaranteed by a credit life policy. In the example I saw they were taking $1,400 per month and distributing a $1,000 "loan" back to the employee. I'm not sure where the other $400 per month was going, maybe into their fees. The part that I am most suspicious of is this credit life component, they state these policies need to be kept in force for the employees lifetime, paid by who, paid to who, what happens when the employee leaves the company, I don't know.
Do you know anything about this part of their plan?

It's a prepaid credit life policy. That said, you've received quite a bit of shall we say "inaccurate" information.

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We did a thorough scrub of The Total Financial Group's Classic 105 Plan. Here are our conclusions:

1. First, The legal opinion letter they have is from a reputable law firm, Ogletree Deakins. The problem with their letter is the fact that Ogletree does not opine on the entire arrangement, only on the basics of a standard 105 plan. There is no mention of any loans to employees and no analysis of the claimed repayment for employee loans via the alleged "group life insurance". In short, the Ogletree letter basically restates the code as it pertains to a generic 105 arrangement and nothing more. It certainly would not provide any legal protection to their customers as they would need their own opinion letter, and one at least in our law firms opinion, that analyzed the entire arrangement not just generalities of code section 105.

2. The claimed "loan" repayment with "group life insurance" is actuarially unsound and is not supportable with fact. Go look at the rates yourself and calculate the cost to keep even the most economical group term life insurance in force until life expectancy. This aspect, in and of itself should be evidence enough to avoid this program. Not to mention the fact that there's no evidence of an insurance company application for insurance, only an incompetently prepared TFG "form",which may in and of itself constitute insurance fraud. ( I'm using the term "form" generously as the "form" is entirely out of order and would certainly not meet NAIC compliance standards).

3. TTFG passes out copy of another legal opinion letter, apparently obtained by an existing Total Financial Group client. It's from an insignificant lawyer who specializes in estate planning, but he does address the "loan" and the legal basis for a loan. To his credit he wisely makes the disclaimer that it is only assumed there is a loan. If TTFG actually has a solvent program, why don't they have legal option from a reputable and significant law firm, who specializes in employee benefits law, willing to opine on the entire arrangement?

4. Total Financial, and specifically Joe Borino and Roth Robertson, Total Financial's National Sales Directors, have made all kinds of unsupportable and contradictory claims about, but not limited to the alleged loans, the legal basis of the entire arrangement, and the number of companies actually enrolled in their Classic 105 plan. If you press Joe Borino for factual proof, he responds with anger and hostility rather than providing substance in fact. If you press Roth Robertson, he says "talk to Joe".


5. TTFG makes the claim that a Hedge Fund is the lending source for the capital used to make the employee loans, but there is no evidence of this claim, and significant evidence clearly confirms this claim is not fact(one example of many available is the ridiculous loan protocol). Joe Borino and Roth Robertson additionally made the claim that Wells Fargo was considering coming on board to provide loans but again, these statements were void of any verifiable documentation or other proof. We additionally contacted a Wells Fargo executive we've worked with for over 20 years, who is in a senior executive management position, to varify the authenticity of TTFG's claims. I'm sure you can imagine what he said after looking into it...entirely unfounded. Additionally, if legitimate loans to individuals/employees were actually taking place, a real lender would secure funds with the borrower, and would not advance them directly to TTFG as claimed. what in fact is actually happening is this: TTFG has the employer withhold the cost of the "Certificate" from the employee's pay, and rather than having the employer send employee "Certificate" monies to TTFG, they re-enter it, as a "loan", minus substantial fees, which are sent back to TTFG. The "loan" is then put back onto the employees pay statement and paycheck! This is supposedly done "as a convenience". I hope you're smart enough to figure out what's really happening here folks...

6. Do the math yourself and take the claimed number of customers, which was stated as "several hundred companies", and add up all of the employee loans(we are talking about approximately 12-20k, per employee, per year). The number becomes rediculous. I can't imagine any organization, most especially a hedge fund, who would loan millions and millions of dollars to Diamond Financial LLC, an LLC apparently owned by Denis Joachim's wife, Donna Pounds Joachim, rather than directly to the borrower. Wake up people. There's no viable security for a lender in this deal! And smart money isn't this stupid and therefore we have additional confirmation of likely fraud. BTW, hopefully you're not this stupid either!

We could go on and on with additional evidence confirming our decision to run from this nightmare in waiting but don't take my word for it. If you do your own homework, and not just except their lies as fact, and you have a moniker of intelligence, you'll come to the same conclusion. SCAM! Don't put your clients in harms way for the sake of satisfying your own greed, let alone TTFG's. This whole affair will ultimately lead to substantial legal, tax, and financial hardship for businesses foolish enough to adopt this program. It won't take long after that for you to be served with litigation and even worse, potential fraud charges.

Finally, A simple review of their website should be meaningful confirmation of the lunicy. I can't imagine ANY solvent company, run by educated professionals who would knowingly display such illiteracy and incompetence.

So there you have it... you now know why we call it the Total Financial Group Classic 105 Scam.

You may have just opened yourself and/or JNInsurance up to a lawsuit....so much "misinformation and absolute lies " posted above that it's almost comical. As noted above, this has been working (with the blessing of the IRS, Federal Reserve, etc.) for 5 years and counting.

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Wow, everything is a scam if you don't understand it, or sell a product that competes with it I guess. I've been approached to sell the Classic 105 and do understand how it works. I chose not to simply because it's not an easy product to sell. I do know it has been fully vetted by the IRS and the DOL, and regardless of what you read above there is nothing illegal about this program....

If you totally understand the program it's an "IQ test" .....easiest product you've ever sold....as there is no "out-of-pocket" cost...... ever! As I've heard so often.....who wouldn't be interested in free money "and" piece of mind?

 

[kccallahan]

hey my best friend is with that company if you woulld like to speak with him you can reach him at (336)408-7935 His name is John Medwin

 

[scagnt83]

Interesting that the phone is disconnected for Total Financial Group. (985) 888-1930

Especially considering that they are the TPA for the non-compliant (and imaginary) "Classic 105 Plan".

Poof. The people in charge of the money are gone....

 

[Key2Success]

Interesting that the phone is disconnected for Total Financial Group. (985) 888-1930

Especially considering that they are the TPA for the non-compliant (and imaginary) "Classic 105 Plan".

Poof. The people in charge of the money are gone....

Not true Scag ....on ALL accounts!

 

[scagnt83]

According to Total Financial Group they were the TPA for "The Classic 105 Plan".

And it was the only "Plan" that they administered... they also sold the group term life policy that served as collateral for the loans the business and employees are liable for. Id bet they got kickbacks off of the loans too... or maybe served as the agent on those too?

Who is sending those premiums to the carrier now? Who is paying the loan interest now?

 

[Key2Success]

According to Total Financial Group they were the TPA for "The Classic 105 Plan".

And it was the only "Plan" that they administered... they also sold the group term life policy that served as collateral for the loans the business and employees are liable for. Id bet they got kickbacks off of the loans too... or maybe served as the agent on those too?

Who is sending those premiums to the carrier now? Who is paying the loan interest now?

Again....not true. According to who???? What premiums? Who paid interest before? You are in outer space without a clue. Any Source at all please! I'd bet you're source is your pet troll.

 

[LGilmore]

key? if you're claiming what SC is saying is not true, the easiest way to prove yourself right is to show something different.

I've called the number today 985-888-1930 and it is disco'd. There is no way to email them as they have no email on their contacts page. I've looked, you can't contact them, how about you show a number where people can contact them?

Why not just show everybody else how wrong they are instead of playing this juvenile game that caused the other two threads to be closed. Be professional, if SC is wrong, show us why. Please show us a way to confirm they are open for business.

As I stated on the other now closed thread this morning pretty much if you're not taking emails or have your phone line connected, you're no longer in business. That's just pretty basic stuff. Please just show us they're still open and a way to verify. that's not trolling you, that's asking you for proof you should be believed over SC. So far, he's crushing you.

 

[scagnt83]

City leaders abandon consideration of health costs plan

 

[LGilmore]

hey my best friend is with that company if you woulld like to speak with him you can reach him at (336)408-7935 His name is John Medwin

How many companies has this guy had since 2010? He's even in here with FE spam for the "C" company? Seems like he can't find somewhere to stick. Is Total his latest stop or is it the one on his facebook page?

You google him and the phone number and you get a wide variety of companies he's either fronting or working for. So is he still at Total or is he at Agents Advantage Plus which seems to be the most current stop for the guy according to his FB page.