November 13, 2008
To Whom it may Concern,
My name is Lynn K. Berry. I am a mebmer of the Financial Planning Assocaiton as well as a Certified Wealth Strategist. I have been in practice since 1992. First as an Insurance Agent in the State of Wisconsin the following year with a securities license. The securities licenses I hold in addition to my Life and Health insurance are Series 6, 7, 24, 26, 51, 63, and Series 65.
I STRONLY SUPORT SEC OVERSIGHT OF INDEXT ANNUITY SALES IN ADDITION TO STATE OVERIGHT (or lack of state oversite which I have found to be the case)
I have too many “horror” stories to list them all and have been very furstrated with clients who have been taken by deceptive sales tactics and omittance of the real pit falls a family can run into with these products! To name a few pitfalls: lack of liquidity, high surrendar charges, suitablity issues and missleading information as to how the benefits really work. Not to mention the high commission some of these agents receive up front with NO reason to continue to service these clients.
I have been an OSJ branch manager since 1996, overseeing at one time, better then 20 registerd representatives, all of whom carried insurance licenses as well. Oversite, is critical for consumer protection!
I think it is a travasty that an insurance licensed agent can call himself or herself an IRA specialist and have NO SECURITIES LICENSE, yet sell a product that appears to be linked strongly to a securities index! The consumer has no idea, really, that they are NOT necessarily receiving the whole trueth. Without proper licensure and oversite, an insurance agent holding NO other licensing, can not possibly share the whole truth!
In light of the current financial crises, in banking and insurance (Leman Brothers, Merill Lynch, AIG…) I believe it is high time that there be an approprate oversite. I do hope we have learned from the debachal of deregulation we saw in the investment banking world, and wake up to the fact that oversite helps protect!
Warm Regards,
Lynn K. Berry, CWS
President, KeyStone Financial Group, LLC
Division Manager ~ NEXT Financial Group, Inc