Social Media Misleading Folks on IUL products

[fed up]

From what I see, I doubt the people suggesting IUL's even understand them

 

[Sheryl J Moore]

A ton of them don't. It's terrible. Nobody is being trained anymore. The insurer thinks it is not their problem; they are a product manufacturer. The FMO thinks it isn't their job to train. How can we improve the state of the IUL industry? sjm

 

[DHK]

How can we improve the state of the IUL industry?

Message: First, focus more on the problems to be solved rather than the product details. The product doesn't matter... until it does.

Product training: Second, the cat is out of the bag for product complexity. I wish the IUL industry stuck to just the S&P 500 index. You've said that there are over 140 different indexes available for index insurance contracts. That being said, have simple to understand literature on how various indexes work AND STOP CREATING NEW COMPOSITE INDEXES WITH TRULY NON-EXISTENT PAST PERFORMANCE! I rightfully blame the companies for that garbage.

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E&O: I think it's becoming time for E&O companies to stop having $0 deductibles on E&O claims on life insurance. Make the agent have some skin in the game in the event of a complaint. This creates a false sense of security around the agent (and the company) marketing the product.

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Sales Liability: Whenever an agent gets a complaint/lawsuit, the company and the upline of that agent (whoever gets compensation) should also be listed as parties to the complaint/lawsuit. Let each person in the upline defend how they promoted quality training practices and individual case design advice to be omitted from the consequences of a guilty verdict. This must, by default, include a review of the agent's advertising and social media messages.

This alone might put an end to the MLM organizations when recruiters realize they will be held accountable for their rep's sales practices.​

Legal consequence training: I've been promoting Steve Savant's interviews with prosecuting attorney Ilya Lerma for a long time now to ensure that agents know the consequences of the advice and recommendations they give. This, or similar consequences, should be required - not just on the consequences on the agent, but the devastation it can cause on the client. John Olsen's books on The Advisor as Defendant should be part of this.



https://www.amazon.com/Advisor-Defendant-Successfully-Revised-Expanded-ebook/dp/B09QHD7M9K/

In short, I want an overriding message to be that this is a profession, not a 'get rich quick' opportunity where you can create great outcomes or problems for the clients they sell to.

If we don't take responsibility for ourselves, regulators will step up even higher to force their standards on us.

 

[DHK]

One thing that I do support is California's new 2025 CE requirements for life insurance, variable insurance, and annuity sales.

Okay the annuity CE was dumb and no noticable difference to me.

The 2025 life insurance CE was good and emphasizes some of this stuff. It is required before soliciting life insurance to California residents.

 

[scagnt83]

NY passed a law that puts the entire upline on the hook for unsuitable sales or illegal sales practices.

 

[Sheryl J Moore]

You teach me every time we interact my dear friend. Thank you for producing actionable suggestions for solving the problem, DHK. I agree with you wholeheartedly. sjm

 

[Sheryl J Moore]

NY passed a law that puts the entire upline on the hook for unsuitable sales or illegal sales practices.

So, would it be safe to assume that the upline is doing training then? They'd have to? Why would I put myself on the line, unless I believe that I was equipping my downline to the best of my ability? SN: that law would never fly on a national basis. Some FMOs/BGAs have more than a dozen layers of hierarchy in their downline. sjm

 

[DHK]

So, would it be safe to assume that the upline is doing training then?

At least they'd be held accountable for their training processes, if any.

 

[SylviaWebb]

From scare tactics, to just straight up lies - what are some things you're finding that potential customers are misled on?

I always love the infinite banking being explained in less than 20 seconds. They come off as experts to be trusted, but quickly the comments blow up with folks arguing the logitics.

So what do you think? Are content creators just creating junk to get comments/interactions to get caught up in the algorithms to get more views?
This is no surprise and based on my IT experience of over 25 years and the emergence of AI, it's only going to get worse unless regulators clamp down on rules governing insurance products content.

TikTok, YouTube videos mislead viewers on life insurance, critics say

The rise of so-called “experts” using half-truths and polished scripts to peddle life insurance on TikTok and YouTube is concerning to many.

insurancenewsnet.com