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Tactics Involved in Mis-Selling to the Elderly
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Posted On :
Aug-10-2009
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Article Word Count :
530
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Seniors are often a target of mis-selling and other types of investment scams. Elderly people are a favorite among scam artists because they aren’t well informed about the intricacies of such financial products.
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Seniors are often a target of mis-selling and other types of investment scams. Elderly people are a favorite among scam artists because they aren’t well informed about the intricacies of such financial products. And because they aren’t very familiar with these matters, it’s easy to persuade them into making an investment, either through scare tactics or through charm.
Underhanded Strategies
There are many deceitful tactics which agents employ to get the elderly to purchase insurance that is unsuitable to their situation. First, they’ll try to win your trust by establishing rapport with you. They will seem interested in everything about you, your family, your job and interests and so on. They’re actually gathering information so they know how to influence your decisions. They will also attempt to project reliability by mentioning the companies they’re affiliated with or certifications they’ve acquired.
Agents will then try to make a sale through varied means. Some will talk about favorable returns on investment, usually quoting figures amounting to thousands of dollars. If that isn't appealing enough, they will add other enticing benefits such as a big discount.
Yet others will paint a gloomy picture for the future saying things like the market won’t be as profitable in the coming years and you may be missing out on a good deal or if you don’t invest now, the policy won’t earn enough to provide for your family.
Products Mis-Sold
These agents sell all sorts of financial products and one of the most popular is the variable annuity or pension fund. This type of insurance cover is often inappropriate as it is costly and may not really provide sufficient protection in the long run. Another popular item being mis-sold is Payment Protection Insurance. Unless you feel you are truly in danger of losing your means of income, PPI policies don’t make much sense. Naturally, agents will try to sell you this product under ambiguous terms so that you aren’t fully aware of what the policy is about.
How to Protect Yourself
There are measures that you can take to ensure you aren’t victimized. An insurance agent should be able to present you with credentials and should be agreeable when asked about details regarding his job, the company he is affiliated with and even how much commission he makes. Any ambiguity or evasiveness on the part of an agent when presented with these questions should be cause for alarm.
Ask if his company is registered with the SEC and other industry regulating bodies. If he says yes, verify this information with the regulators. If you think the person may be untrustworthy or feel he is imposing on your time, feel free to say no.
Whenever you deal with insurance agents, make sure to ask a lot of questions. If there is anything you don’t understand, ask for a clarification. Also, it is best to acquire the services of an independent financial adviser. IFAs are usually not affiliated with any insurance company so they will be able to give you unbiased evaluations of products. An adviser can help you weed out the bad deals from the good ones.
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Article Source :
http://www.articleseen.com/Article_Tactics Involved in Mis-Selling to the Elderly_2315.aspx
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Author Resource :
If you have ever taken out any payment protection insurance it may have been mis-sold and you could be entitled to claim it back. Real Claims specialise in reclaiming mis-sold PPI and unenforceable loans
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Keywords :
Consumer Credit Act Claim Solicitors, Bad Debt, Wipe your Debt, PPI, Payment Protection Insurance,
Category :
Finance
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Finance
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