by Structured Settlement Watchdog
If you're an investor and being pitched to buy structured settlement annuities you are being scammed.
- It is a scam because investors cannot buy structured settlement annuities. Annuitants cannot sell them either, because they don't own the underlying annuity. It is generally owned by a qualified assignment company. Anyone pitching such an investment to you, will require you to sign a Receivables Purchase Agreement, if you decide to buy.
- A Receivables Purchase Agreement is not an annuity application.
- A Structured Settlement Receivables Purchase Agreement is not a structured settlement annuity application.
- The scam is the use of misleading sales pitch not the investment itself. If you go through with one of these deals, please repeat 10 times : not buying an annuity, not buying annuity, not buying annuity...
To be clear, this post is a warning to investors, especially those considering committing retirement plan money, to be sure you know what you are buying, or thinking about buying.
Be cautious about cashing out of legitimate retirement annuities for structured settlement receivables unless you completely understand what you are buying and decide to accept the risk only after becoming fully informed
If you decide to proceed, make sure you understand the very real consequences of zero protection in the event of insolvency of the underlying annuity issuer, if you reside in one of the majority of USA states that have adopted the 2017 Revisions to Life & Health Guaranty Association Model Act. Because you are not buying an annuity.
This is a nuance that can be hard to get your head around.
- While the receivables are derived from an annuity, the seller does not own the annuity, neither does the transferee who will assign the payment rights to you in exchange for your investment.
- Even if you did a direct deal with a seller, without a transferee you still would not be buying an annuity and the seller would not be selling you an annuity.
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