ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
What Duty Does An Agent Owe You?
Putting You First
A Recent Case Makes Headlines
We at Evans Law Firm represent clients who have been harmed as the result of insurance agents who put their own interests before yours. We remain committed to holding agents and insurance companies to the highest standards the law and industry regulations impose on them. If you or a loved one has been sold an inappropriate life insurance or annuity policy or has been a victim of a breach of fiduciary duty, fraudulent concealment of information, securities fraud or financial elder abuse, contact the Evans Law Firm insurance, securities and financial elder abuse attorneys at (415) 441-8669 and we can help.
Recently, we filed a complaint in the Superior Court for the County of San Francisco on behalf of an aggrieved policyholder who was sold an inappropriate annuity by her insurance agents and the carrier they represent. In the complaint, the injured plaintiff alleges negligence, violation of various California business statutes, fraudulent concealment, fraudulent misrepresentation, and breach of fiduciary duty by the three defendants. Plaintiff was a recent widow, unversed in financial matters, and living on a limited fixed income when defendants approached her with an annuity sales pitch. The complaint alleges that defendants took unfair advantage of her situation and sold her a contract that generated a large premium and sales commissions but was inappropriate for her for a variety of reasons.
Our attorneys handle such cases every day. We know the legal standards of conduct expected of insurance agents, advisors and carriers. Our attorneys know what agents must disclose to their customers about the contracts the agents sell. If you live in California and are over age 60, there are additional disclosure requirements and other rules that apply to you and our attorneys know what to do if agents and carriers have not complied with those requirements and rules.
If you are the victim of wrongdoing by an insurance agent we at Evans Law Firm can help you hold that agent to the highest standard of conduct the law prescribes. We are fortunate in California in that our State legislature leads the way in protections against unscrupulous agents. This is particularly true for seniors[1], where the agent’s misconduct may well amount to financial elder abuse. California allows extra damages and mandatory attorneys’ fees in these cases and imposes additional duties and disclosure requirements on agents. The law prohibits agents from cross-selling products to you in certain situations, requires an extended free-look period during which you can get out of the contract without penalty, and requires a detailed disclosure of any surrender penalties in the policy. All of these measures are meant to protect you. We at Evans Law Firm have experience with all these requirements and know how to represent you when an agent or carrier has ignored or short-changed you on any of them.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one has been a victim of a breach of fiduciary duty, annuity or securities fraud or financial elder abuse in California, contact the Evans Law Firm insurance and annuities attorneys at (415) 441-8669, or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. Our attorneys have experience with complex securities cases, arbitrations, and mediations; and complicated financial contracts and large insurance companies. We can help guide your case through a jury trial or toward an equitable settlement. We also handle cases involving physical and financial elder abuse, other types of qui tam and whistleblower cases, nursing home abuse, whole life insurance and universal life insurance, and indexed, variable, and fixed annuities.
Some of the leading providers of life insurance and annuities in California are listed below. We are not in any way suggesting that any of these carriers have committed wrongdoing. The list is provided solely as a reference for readers.
AIG/American General Life Insurance Company
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America
American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company
American General Life Insurance Company/AIG
American National Life Insurance Company
Ameriprise Financial/RiverSource Life Insurance Company
Athene Annuity and Life Company
Aviva Life Insurance Company
AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company/AXA US
Bankers Life Insurance and Casualty Company
Brighthouse Financial, Inc./MetLife
Crump Life Insurance Services, Inc.
CUNA Mutual Group/CMFG Life Insurance Company
EquiTrust Life Insurance Company
Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company
Forethought Life Insurance Company/Global Atlantic Financial Group
Genworth Life Insurance Company
Global Atlantic Financial Group/Forethought Life Insurance Company
Guardian Life Insurance Company
Guggenheim Partners/Security Benefit Life Insurance Company
ING USA Annuity and Life Insurance Company
Jackson National Life Insurance Company
John Hancock Life Insurance Company
Lincoln Benefit Life Company
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company
Metlife/Metropolitan Life Insurance Company/Brighthouse Financial, Inc.
Nationwide Life Insurance Company
New York Life Insurance Company
Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company
Pacific Life Insurance Company
Principal Financial Group
Prudential Life Insurance Company
Raymond James Insurance Group
RiverSource Life Insurance Company/Ameriprise Financial
Security Benefit Life Insurance Company/Guggenheim Partners
Symetra Life Insurance Company
Transamerica Life Insurance Company
Unum Life Insurance Company of America
Voya/Reliastar Life Insurance Company
[1] In the recently filed case, the plaintiff was not a senior citizen.
