August 24, 2010
As an insurance agent, I am already supervised regarding suitability of product whether they be fixed or variable. The standard of suitability is what leads us to recommend products to customers after analyzing their financial factors. I do not believe that adding a fiduciary standard to the selling process will protect a customer from sub-standard sales efforts on the part of a small number of untrained agents interested only in commissions. What gives a customer a sense of trust is that we participate in continuing education and training, and adhere to a code of ethics that says the customer's interests are first.