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June 26, 2017

Structured Settlement Trust was Allstate Structured Settlements' Treasury Funded Qualified Assignee

by John Darer® CLU ChFC MSSC RSP CLTC

A structured settlement payee (who was not one of my clients) called me 24 years after his structured settlement was established. The man had diversified with three structured settlement obligors,  Safeco (Symetra) Assigned Benefits Service Company,  Transamerica Annuity Service Company and the generic named "Structured Settlement Trust". He could not locate the latter and his payment had not yet arrived.

It was remarkable that while each continues to meet its obligations, not a single entity is writing structured settlements in 2017.

The regulatory take over of Executive Life Insurance Company in the midst of a period that also saw the failure of 1,043 out of the 3,234 savings and loan associations in the United States from 1986 to 1995, saw a number of life companies came up with treasury funded structured settlements as alternatives to annuity funded structured settlements.  Treasury bonds are a permissible qualified funding asset under IRC 130(d). In addition the Schultz brothers and the late Richard G. Halpern,  several life insurers created their own version of a treasury funded structured settlement (then also known as "T-Bond Trusts"), including GE Capital and Allstate, whose assignment company was called "Structured Settlement Trust".

Use of Generic Names in Structured Settlement Products

When naming these entities it would be worth the consideration of those establishing such a trust to not use a generic name. The reason is simple, it is reasonably foreseeable that over the term of the trust, some beneficiary of a trust will lose or misplace their paperwork, or it could get destroyed in a fire or flood or eaten by the proverbial dog (along with the homework assignment).  When I Googled "Structured Settlement Trust", absolutely nothing related to Allstate came up. When you consider in the near quarter of a century that some of the people who sold the "Structured Settlement Trust" are retired or even deceased, it is fortunate that there was one seasoned veteran on a list serve who was spot on with the answer that it was Allstate's version of the treasury funded structured settlement. 

Companies Cease Writing Products and There Are Spin Offs and Mergers

Allstate ceased writing new structured settlement annuities in 2013. Shortly thereafter, ostensibly to lower the ongoing cost of servicing of its in-force block of structured settlement annuities, it farmed the public interfacing customer service function out to a Philippine call center. In April 2015, I reported how a very stressed out Allstate annuitant was told by the Allstate Philippine call center that her 20 years certain & life payments had stopped [see Allstate Structured Settlements | If You Have One You Must Read This]. Fortunately in contacting me she reached someone who knew the history that Allstate had the peculiar practice of issuing separate contracts for the period certain and life time components of a structured settlement and determined that this was a coding error on Allstate's part. Through sheer persistence, we were able to get it resolved by going directly to Allstate and advocating for this annuitant until we found someone who knew the history and could get the problem fixed.

List of Current and Former Structured Settlement Annuity Issuers Customer Service Phone Numbers

 

 

Posted at 11:26 AM in Allstate Structured Settlements and Structured Payment Solutions, CT Structured Settlements, Dallas Fort Worth TX Structured Settlements, IRC 130(d) Qualified Funding Asset, Long Island NY Structured Settlements, Los Angeles CA Structured Settlements, New Jersey Structured Settlements, New York City Structured Settlements, New York Structured Settlements, Newark NJ Structured Settlements, Structured Settlement History, Structured Settlement Industry News, Structured Settlement Information, Structured Settlement Trust Qualified Assignment, Structured Settlement Watchdog®, Structured Settlements in Ithaca New York area, Structured Settlements in Miami Florida area, Structured Settlements in Nassau County, NY, Syracuse Structured Settlements |

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Guide to Structured Settlements 2023

  • What is a Structured Settlement? What You Need to Know
    Structured settlements and what you need to know about them including a helpful introductory video featuring 2023 A.M. Best Client Recommended Structured Settlement Expert and Registered Settlement Planner John Darer® of 4structures.com® LLC
  • How Do Structured Settlements Work? How Structured Settlements Work
    How structured settlements work, including 4structures.com LLC's super helpful structured settlement flow chart/diagram showing how structured settlements fit in on the spectrum of settlement planning solutions.
  • Rated Ages and Structured Settlement Cost
    Rated Ages for Structured Settlement Annuities present advantages to all parties. Shift the mortality risk to a life insurance company whose business it it is to assess mortality risk to price its life insurance and annuities. Rated ages boost your structured settlement annuity benefit per premium dollar, or your yield on lifetime payments. Rated ages help to reduce the cost of funding a Medicare Set Aside arrangement where a Structured MSA, is being used { WCMSA LMSA or NFMSA].
  • Structured Settlement Annuity Companies 2023
    Which life insurance companies issue structured settlement annuities going into 2023? A list of current structured annuity issuers, the location of their home offices and their financial ratings from A.M. Best, Moodys, Fitch, Standard & Poors and/or other Tier1 NAIC ratings, with links to their websites and other useful information.
  • Treasury Funded Structured Settlements
    Treasury Funded Structured Settlements are a settlement option for the most conservative using the OTHER permissible qualified funding asset under IRC 130(d), United States Treasury Bonds in addition to, or instead of, structured settlement annuities. Treasury Funded Structured Settlements can also be used to fund installment sales, also known as structured sales and other non qualified structured settlements.
  • Compare Structured Settlement IRR to Other Settlement Alternatives
    Use the Taxable Equivalent Yield chart to help compare the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of a structured settlement to other alternative or complementary investments. Need help with the chart? Call 4structures.com® LLC at 888-325-8640
  • Structured Settlement Payments | Types of Structured Settlements
    Ways You Can Structure Your Settlement Payments. With a structured settlement you can have more than one type of payment in a single contract. Different types of structured settlement payments can be customized and combined to meet your needs on a stand-alone basis, or in conjunction with other financial products. Diversify your structured settlement, if you wish, by funding with more than one annuity issuer, with treasury funded structured settlements, index linked structured settlement payments and market based structured .
  • Structured Attorney Fees for Tax Deferral for Contingency Fees
    Structured attorney fees is a financial strategy that offers a unique way to defer taxes for lawyers and law firms. Lawyers CAN structure their legal fees even if the plaintiff doesn't structure their settlement. There are multiple ways to structure your attorney fees, such as the an index linked structured settlement where payments are adjusted based on upside changes in the S&P 500 with no downside and a cap of 5%. Trial Lawyers may also use a special deferred pay/deferred compensation arrangement, if market based returns returns are desired with no cap. Plan NOW for year end! Put structured attorney fee expert John Darer® on your settlement planning team.
  • Structured Settlement Annuity Company Customer Service Phone Numbers
    Receiving structured settlement payments from your own structured settlement or inherited structured settlement? You'll like this huge time saver. Click for a comprehensive list of customer service telephone numbers that includes both current AND former structured settlement annuity issuers and reinsurers. If you have simple bank or beneficiary changes, or if the insurance company that issued the structured annuity has merged, sold or spun off its block of structured annuity business (e.g. Aviva, Allstate, Transamerica, AEGON, GE Capital, Liberty, CNA, Confederation Life) or changed its name and you're trying to track them down, here you go! The list is regularly updated. Last updated January 23, 2023.
  • Structured Settlement Quote Lock-Ins | What You Need To Know
    What does a Structured Settlement Lock-In Mean? How do plaintiffs, defendants and insurers benefit from a structured settlement quote lock in when finalizing a settlement? How does the defendant/insurer/court benefit from using a structured settlement lock-in? Where to be careful when using structured settlement lock ins.
  • What Are Structured Settlement Annuities?
    Structured settlement annuities are annuities that can provide one or more customized annuity payment streams in a single contract. Read about structured settlement annuities here.
  • History of Structured Settlements
    Tracing the roots of structured settlements history from 1918, when Congress exempted damages for personal injury or sickness from income tax, to the establishment of structured settlements as a core personal injury settlement planning tool to the present day.
  • What Are Market Based Structured Settlements?
    Market based structured settlements are an alternative or supplementary structured settlement solution for the plaintiff, attorney or law firm that: 1. Can afford to take some market risk 2. Have discretionary settlement dollars. Claimants and attorneys alike may find that market-based structured settlements provide the opportunity to receive tax-free income, or tax-deferred income, while enjoying growth potential.
  • iStructure |Uncapped Fixed Index Structured Settlement Annuity
    iStructure is an innovative game changing fixed index structured settlement annuity for plaintiffs or attorneys. with an intermediate to long term horizon

Qualified Settlement Funds

  • What is a Qualified Settlement Fund?
    Qualified Settlement Funds | What You Need to Know
  • Firmwide Qualified Settlement Funds Debunked
    Firmwide qualified settlement funds have been heavily promoted to trial lawyers, but have been debunked in a detailed analysis in a July 2022 legal opinion a tax partner at the law firm of Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLP. Trial lawyers and firms who have established Firmwide QSFs or coinsidering establishing a Firmwide QSF should read the analysis as part of their evaluation.

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    with a stable readership that seeks credible structured settlement information and/or opinion about topical issues related to settlement planning, targeted to lawyers, injured persons and their family members, guardians, survivors, judges, magistrates, special masters, mediators, administrators, trust companies, insurance company executives and adjusters, financial advisers settlement professionals, financial professionals, insurance regulators, government leaders, federal and state law enforcement, buyers and sellers of structured settlement payment rights, the news media and other interested parties. 4structures.com LLC established the structured settlement blog in 2005 and for over 17 years it has been a leading source for critical commentary. The John Darer authored blog has been among the most prolific, regularly providing fresh structured settlement, settlement planning, litigation recovery management content and commentary. John Darer®, CLU ChFC MSSC CeFT® RSP CLTC, President of Stamford, CT based 4structures.com, LLC, is an experienced New York City area structured settlement expert, structured settlement broker, Certified Financial Transitionist, and Registered Settlement Planner. In his capacity as a investigative journalist and commentator, and professionally, John Darer passionately believes that shining the light on a business practice is both healthy and newsworthy. It is in the best interest of tort victims, their families and their legal advisers, that the settlement planning discussion involve those that are properly trained in the topic, properly informed on the topic and, with respect to structured settlements, properly licensed and/or appointed). It has significant instructional and deterrent value to other practitioners and firms as well as those who may be caught in the cross hairs. WHAT YOU GET here is the straight stuff with a touch of irreverence and humor. We hope you enjoy and find the content to be helpful. Subscribe to the structured settlement blog feed, or a specific category feed through your blog reader, or through the Feedburner icon on this page. Followers of JDDarer™ on Twitter may also receive select content. If you would like to speak with John he can be reached at (888)325-8640 Thank you for reading! Last updated October 10, 2022

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Structured Settlement Best Practices Corner

  • New York Insurance Advertising law requires the full name of the Insurer to be listed along with the city and state of the principal office. Stating that you represent these fine companies using Insurance company logos without the preceding information are also illegal
  • When it comes to settlement documents it is the ultimate responsibility of the lawyers or claims adjusters who receive input concerning the structured settlement aspects of the documents to actually read the entire document, exercise independent thought and advise their clients properly
  • Be aware that financial advisors use of testimonials is prohibited or restricted
  • Most states require that Testimonials represent the CURRENT opinion of the person who made the testimonial. Be prepared to back it up.
  • Number of States That Prohibit Payment of QSF expenses by licensed agents and brokers
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