www.servingourseniors.org
21
800-564-1856 419-624-1856
G
ary
C. y
ontz
, S
r
.
LUTCF, CLTC
Investment Advisor Representative
310 E. Boalt Street Unit D, Sandusky, Ohio 44870 • 419-626-1765 ext. 101
Long Term Care Insurance • Life Insurance • Individual and Group Health Insurance
Medicare Supplements • Annuities • Our Agency has served the area for over 40 years
Registered Representative/Securities and Investment Advisory Services offered through Signator Investors, Inc.,
Member FINRA, SIPC, a Registered Investment Advisors. 6500 Busch Blvd, Ste. 105, Columbus, OH 43229,
614-846-6000, Offering John Hancock Insurance products 134-20101118-63234
Signature Financial Group, LLC
Linda R. Van Tine Co., L.P.A.
Probate
Estates
Guardianships
Estate Planning
Special Needs
Planning
1410 Central Ave., Sandusky, Ohio 44870
◄
419.625.4010
►
Expertise you can depend on for your loved ones
Annuity Sales & Annuity Fraud
Older people are frequent targets of fnancial scams
aimed at bilking them out of their life savings. One of the
most common scams targeting the elderly is investment
fraud involving annuities.
What is an Annuity?
An annuity is an insurance product
that pays a steady stream of income, making it a popular
investment and retirement plan for many Americans.
Annuities can pay over a period of time (for example,
from retirement to death) or in a lump sum. Payments
by so-called variable annuities “vary” according to the
investment results in the side-accounts chosen by the
owner (usually a combination of stocks and bonds).
By contrast, a fxed annuity earns “fxed” return at
rates set by the annuity contract and provides a
guaranteed payout.
Although annuities can be useful retirement tools, they
can also be used by unscrupulous agents to defraud
unsuspecting victims. Even the most fnancially savvy
consumers can be duped into purchasing annuity
products that charge exorbitant fees for early withdrawals
or can’t be cashed out for a set number of years – well
after the benefciary has died. Both offer tax-deferred
growth opportunities but at a price (fees).
Younger investors should also be wary of pitches to use
qualifed retirement plan monies (e.g., an IRA or 401(k))
to purchase annuities.
Here are four signs that you or your elderly loved one
may have been the victim of an annuities scam:
Signs of Annuity Fraud
1. Is the Senior unlikely to live long enough to collect
their payment(s).
2. The annuity makes up more than 35% of the senior’s
assets.
3. The Surrender Fee (the amount the senior will have to
pay if they cash-in an annuity early) is more than 14%
of the principal.
4. The same agent sold the senior multiple annuities.
You are invited to Serving Our Seniors public forum
entitled,
Annuity Sales & Annuity Fraud
. The speakers
panel will be Tom Nieswander, Fraud Investigator, Ohio
Department of Insurance and John Murray, Attorney-
At-Law. RSVP’s required. (See Calendar of events for
details pg 4).
By Dennis Murray, Jr. Attorney-At-Law