Did you know that structured settlements have been allowed by the United States Congress, since 1982? A structured settlement is a great way to ensure long-term stability when it comes to your finances. The key is to avoid dishonest people and learn how to avoid a scam when it comes to receiving a structured settlement.
Keep reading to learn how you can protect yourself against scammers.
- Use Your Own Broker
You want to insist that your attorney uses a plaintiff broker to represent your interests. It is best to not rely on the defenses’ structured settlement broker because the insurance company that is issuing a structured annuity pays a commission to the broker that is involved.
This means that the structured settlement broker will receive a portion of the commission so there is no out-of-pocket cost to the plaintiff. Usually, this portion is half of the commission.
- Avoid the Middle Person
Avoiding the middleman will make a world of a difference because it will avoid someone pocketing any of your money. You want to make sure that the settlement money that funds the structured annuity is indeed being sent directly to the life insurance company.
In some scams, in the past, the middleman was able to embezzle millions and conceal their activity via false documents that show annuity purchases.
- Get It in Writing
One of the best ways to protect yourself is to document, document, document. Get everything from the company you are working with, in writing no matter what they promise and say, make sure that they can provide it to you in writing.
Insist on having all annuity price quotations submitted to you and your attorney via paper or email.
- Unethical Conduct
Something else that you want to do is watch out for companies or people that are not being very ethical. This is where doing your research on reviews will come in handy. For example, Rightway Funding Yelp reviews will help you see if there are numerous complaints or if people are indeed happy with their settlements.
Thanks to the internet it is easy to see when people are not happy and when people are satisfied with a company. You have the right to ask for an affidavit stating that they do not pay commission to any insurer or to any party. You can also ask them to fully disclose age-rating in order to help avoid any misrepresentation of the true cost of the annuity.
If they decline to provide this then it is a red flag and you should really consider walking away.
Now You Know How to Avoid a Scam
As you can see above there are a few different ways to avoid a scam and now you are aware of how to avoid a scam when you are selling your structured settlements. The goal is to avoid the bad apples in the structured settlement world.
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