What will be the fallout from the Glenn Neasham case?
That's just one of the hot-button topics we'll be discussing during Thursday's live 2012 Opportunities in Annuities Web seminar, where a trio of panelists will discuss a variety of key issues affecting the market during the free one-hour event.
If you're in this industry and haven't heard about the Neasham case, first off, welcome back from Siberia. Here's the 30-second recap:
Back in October, a California jury found Lakeport, Calif., insurance agent Glenn Neasham guilty of felony theft for selling an Allianz MasterDex 10 annuity to an 83-year-old client in February 2008. Neasham claims he had no knowledge at the time that the client had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. On Feb. 29, Judge Richard Martin denied the motion for a new trial, refused to drop the felony charge to a misdemeanor and sentenced Neasham to probation and 300 days in jail. Martin stayed all but 90 days of the sentence. Neasham is due to turn himself in on April 18. He plans to appeal. The case has essentially put him out of business, and his family has fallen on hard times. The case has generated massive interest among producers, who have posted hundreds of comments online. The $175,000 annuity in question, by the way, had actually increased in value by $42,000 at the time of the trial.
Regardless of your thoughts about the specifics of the Neasham case, there is little doubt it will have profound repercussions throughout the indexed annuity market.
- Will producers in California — now more than ever wary of the state's far-reaching elder abuse law as well as the motives of the state's insurance department — weigh the risks and decide to essentially stop working with any potential client over the age of 80?
- Will a flood of agents voluntarily terminate their contracts with Allianz (which has not commented on the case and has terminated Neasham's appointment with the company) in a show of solidarity and support for Neasham?
- Will this case become a precedent, and if so, how will it affect producers and annuity sales?
It will be interesting to see what our panelists — including a producer from California — have to say about this case during Thursday's free one-hour 2012 Opportunities in Annuities Web seminar, which you can register for by clicking the link.
