Re: Re: Re: Truth v. Deception

Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Truth v. Deception

Comments:
: What is wrong with primerica's sales tatics? : They tell the truth to the consumer? : I don't think so! : Here's what's wrong: : MYTH: Primerica's life insurance is competitive. : FACT: It is one of the highest in the industry. : EXAMPLE: My premium with Primerica for $300,000 on me and the same on my wife, $860 per year. My premium with another company for $500,000 on me and the same on my wife, $610 per year. : MYTH: Primerica's mortgage are better for the consumer. : FACT: While most lenders currently have rates at around 6.5%, Primerica’s lenders currently start at around 8%. To get you to buy in to this overpricing, PFA’s will tell you “Interest rate isn't important, it's how long you will be in debt and how much you will pay that counts.” They will tell you that you can pay bi-weekly on their products and that no one else can provide this service. This is totally untrue. You can accelerate loan payments with most institutions - it makes sense to shop around and get the lowest interest rate available. Free software is available on the Internet that allows you to create a debt elimination schedule, independent of a vendor. This is one of many tricks independent reps pull to get you to “close” the deal so they can take their commission check. Bottom line: SHOP AROUND. : MYTH: Primerica reps are qualified to help people with finances. : FACT: When you join Primerica, you will be given the title of Personal Financial Analyst or PFA and will be led to believe that you are qualified to speak with people about their finances. The title of PFA is a meaningless title designed to dupe the public into thinking the rep is something more than a salesperson, ie: a Chartered Financial Analyst, Certified Financial Planner, or some other real professional designation that indicates an advanced education in financial matters. However, by visiting the Important Disclosure section of the Primerica website at http://www.pfsnet.com/disclosures_frameset.html, you will find the following: : “…The Financial Needs Analysis is not a financial plan.” “…Primerica representatives are referred to as Personal Financial Analysts (PFAs). PFAs are compensated through commissions on the sale of financial products offered by the financial product companies they represent. PFAs are not financial planners, investment advisors, financial consultants or other specialists who provide financial advice and whose compensation may be unrelated to sales.” : MYTH: With Primerica, you own your own business. : FACT: In the contract (Independent Business Application or IBA) you must sign to “join” Primerica, in Part II, paragraph 6 is the following: : “…You are an independent contractor (and not an employee or officer of any PFS Company, or an owner of any part of the PFS sales force or customer base)....” (Emphasis added) (Sales force means your recruits, downline etc, and customer base means your customers, your downline's customers, etc.) : MYTH: 6 figure incomes are common with Primerica. : FACT: Primerica currently has approximately 90,000 representatives. They also claim to pay out approximately $450 million in compensation to their reps. Let’s break that down. : · 34 reps “earn” $1 million – over $4 million per year. $1 million times 34 reps is $34 million. That leaves $416 million in compensation and 89,966 reps. ($450 million - $34 million and 90,000 - 34) : · 1,445 “earn” $100,000 - $999,999 per year. 1,445 reps times $100,000 is $144.5 million. That leaves $271.5 million in compensation and 88,521 reps. ($416 million - $144.5 million and 89,966 – 1,445) : · 3,533 “earn” $50,000 - $99,999 per year. 3,533 reps times $50,000 is $176.65 million. That leaves $94.85 million in compensation and 84,988 reps. ($271.5 million – 176.65 million and 88,521 – 3,533) : · That leaves $94.85 million in compensation to split between 84,988 reps. That averages out to approximately $1,116 per rep, per year. And that is figuring at the low end. (Some of the first group make more than $1 million, some of the second group make more than $100,000, etc., which will bring the average compensation per rep, per year LOWER!! : What does this mean? It means that 95% of the agents at Primerica DO NOT make a livable income. : MYTH: Term insurance is best & cash value insurance & the agents that sell it are bad. : FACT: Primerica’s biggest product is term life insurance. They go around teaching that ALL cash value life insurance AND the companies that sell them are bad. However, they don’t bother to let you know that Primerica itself WHOLLY owns AT LEAST one company (National Benefit Life or NBL) that sells mostly cash value insurance and is sister companies with other companies that sell it (Travelers Insurance, etc.). : MYTH: Banks & Credit card companies are bad. : FACT: Primerica also preaches that banks and credit card companies are evil, yet Primerica’s parent company (Citigroup), owns Travelers Bank & Trust and Citibank. They also bad-mouth most mortgage companies, yet the companies they use for loans (The Associates and Citifinancial) have been accused of predatory lending practices by the FTC. (See http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2001/03/associates.htm for more information.) : That should put those questions to rest! : : : : Franklin: : : : I would have checked out my facts before making those type allegations, and they still respond, : : : so far we have only heard one side of the story (yours). : : : However, because of Primerica's marketing tactics, other agents may feel that just about everything : : : the company does is unethical or suspect. : : ok i'd like to know what is wrong with primerica's sales tatics? i'm not aware of any fines being levied by any regulators for misleading or deceptivesales tatics. geee wonder why? maybe because they tell the truth to the consumer. : : : : : : We should wait and give this (non Primerca) agents the benefit of the doubt first. : : : Agent : : : : Let's not fall in a trap here. In the past few days we have observed 2 posts which make firm assertions that PFS markets funds with higher fee's and loads than generally availble. : : : : First, Mislead claimed that the Smith Barney funds sold by PFS have a higher fee structure than those sold by Smith Barney brokers. He was asked to confirm this with a specific fund (Fundamental Value) but suddenly was no longer as firm in his response. In fact, he backed away entirely. A quick review of a prospectus reveals his assertion was erroneous. Now was that an intentional deception or one borne of ignorance? Either way, his posts must now be viewed with a suspicious eye. If it was intentional--he sacrificed his integrity. It it was ignorance---his credibility. : : : : Next, TVO has stated firmly that fund families will not market their funds through PFS. Rather they develop a clone ("look-alike") for them to market. This, too, is rather easy to repudiate. Simply call any of the fund families or read a prospectus from a broker and a PFS rep. Again the question begs....why deceive? : : : : It is simply beyond my ability to understand why one who strives to build a case that a particular firm is deceptive uses deceptive postings to advance their argument. Equally as troubling are the errors of ommission. Why do the former reps of this company refuse to step forward (as the obvious in-house experts here) and correct what they know is false? Has your focus become so narrow as to only see what you want to see? Does your new-found righteousness not incorporate fairness to both sides of an issue? Do you feel that stating a balanced, reasoned approach will not benefit your cause? : : : : Let's stick to the obvious facts and get away from the deceptive innuendo.

Please enter the characters in the image above.