Sen. Elizabeth Warren is continuing her fight against incentives that might influence what kinds of life insurance or annuity products that agents, brokers and advisors sell to consumers.
The Massachusetts Democrat today announced that she has sent letters to the 15 biggest U.S. annuity issuers to ask about use of cash bonuses, trips, jewelry, electronic devices and other perks to influence producers' advice.
Her letter includes references to promotions for term life insurance and indexed universal life insurance as well as products such as multi-year guaranteed annuities.
She is asking each company to provide a list of the incentives awarded to producers and distributors.
She is also asking for copies of incentive program fliers and copies of insurers' incentive program disclosure policies, along with a "list of any lobbying activity by your company" related to the Labor Department's new investment advice fiduciary regulations.
What it means: Warren intends to keep up the pressure on annuity issuers.
Warren: Warren led efforts to create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. She has long been a critic of what she believes to be anti-consumer financial services company practices.
She highlighted concerns about annuity sales incentives in a 2015 report, as the Labor Department was developing an earlier version of the fiduciary standard regulations that eventually died in the federal courts.
Labor Department officials refer directly to Warren's reports in their discussion of the compensation disclosure provisions in the preamble to the new investment advice fiduciary regulations.
Warren, who is running for reelection, also is working on many other issues, including student loans and concerns about ransomware at health insurers and other companies.
The Labor Department: The Labor Department appears to be warmer to paid travel and sales incentives than Warren is.
