ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER

What Duty Does An Agent Owe You?

Putting You First

We at Evans Law Firm have for years litigated the question of an insurance agent’s duty to his clients, particularly when it comes to life insurance and/or annuities. We have written on the subject in this column. As life insurance and annuity lawyers, we’ve followed changes in the case law, legislative and agency initiatives, and internal changes in the insurance and annuity industry. In general, the direction is toward more protection for the American public, particularly seniors. We want to keep you informed of the changes. In representation of our clients, we remain committed to holding agents to the highest standards the law and industry regulations impose on them. We combat exploitative financial practices against seniors, life insurance and annuity buyers, and retirement savers every day. If you or a loved one has been a victim of a breach of fiduciary duty, securities fraud or financial elder abuse, or find yourself headed toward a FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) arbitration, contact the Evans Law Firm securities and financial elder abuse attorneys at (415) 441-8669 and we can help. As California lawyers, we only handle these types of cases arising in California.

What This Means

After months of delay, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) long-awaited “fiduciary rule” recently took effect. Simply put, the rule requires financial advisors to put your interests first. From now on when you seek advice on your IRA, 401(k) or other retirement savings account, your financial advisor, broker or banker will be required to put your interests first in whatever recommendations he or she makes. We at Evans Law Firm applaud the fiduciary rule and hope State legislatures, insurance departments, and the industry itself broaden the scope of the rule. Recently, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners announced just that and we will keep you informed of any additional consumer protections as they are adopted.

In the meantime, be assured that 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, where the agent’s misconduct may well amount to financial elder abuse. California allows extra damages and other remedies in these cases and imposes on agents additional duties and disclosures. For example, your agent must conduct a thorough suitability analysis of any recommendation. This includes a complete look at your financial picture, including your age, your income, other resources, cash reserves, future needs, and debt and liquidity reviews. 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 the recommended investment may contain. All of these measures are meant to protect you. We at Evans Law Firm have vast experience with all these requirements and know how to represent you when an agent 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 San Mateo County or anywhere in California or are headed to FINRA Arbitration, contact the Evans Law Firm securities attorneys at (415) 441-8669, or by email at info@evanslaw.com. 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.