Just wanted to let everyone know that I ran into a "rarity" in the insurance business. I had several problems with some investments and this agent helped me fix them all. She was honest and straighforward, pulling no punches and I am usually reluctant to trust "salespeople," but she was not pushy at all. I usually don't refer others to businesses, but I made a promise that if she could fix my problems then I would spread the word. Anyway, she gave me her business card and it had her web address on it. I don't think she would mind if I posted it here. So, if you need some great advice (she doesn't charge either), then check her out. www.adams-financial-services.com
Passing on some information!
Comments ... #
Nope, doesn't charge and I even asked why too. She told me that she gets paid by the insurance companies she does business with and she is able to offer such great deals because she works with them all. She told me that she is independent and doesn't work for one specific company. My agent before her worked for Mutual of Omaha, and of course, he could only sell their products.
BTW - YOU are paying the insurance company (cost of insurance, M&E expenses, riders, etc.) ALL investments have fees, whether or not you see them. I am a financial advisor and will tell you that they are there, hidden or not. If she were purely ethical, this would be disclosed.
First of all, I'd like to thank my client for the "kudos" and the email letting me know that he posted. Second of all, it is true that I do not charge for my services because I do get paid by the insurance companies that I deal with.
Newbie, I AM purely ethical which is rare in this business (proud to be so too), so please do not assume otherwise. I fully disclose any and all information regarding annuities and life insurance, but I appreciate your concern. I NEVER "persuade" my clients to do something they do not feel comfortable with, and like I said, I disclose EVERYTHING so they can make their own decisions based on their personal needs and life-styles. I fully explain any and all surrender charges (the only fees attached to annuities IF you withdraw any funds over 10% annually) to my clients; however most of my clients are in it for the long haul and have no desire to withdraw more than the 10% allotted each year. My clients do not go in blind-folded. I give them plenty of reasons to earn their trust, business and referrals.
I appreciate you clarifying your position, adamsfs. You and I both do our best to find new clients, do the right thing for them, and earn a living at the same time. But please understand - whenever I hear someone say, "My broker is so great, he/she does all this for me and does it for FREE!", my BS meter goes off the charts. I'm relieved to know that you do make full disclosure part of your practice. I just feel that too many people get mislead too easily, especially when the market is down. All in all, it's nice to see that your service is valued so much that your clients will announce it to others.
I have also utilized Adams Financial and found her to be credible as well as free. Thanks for helping me understand my options!
Somebody needs to tell vtgrzly that this forum is not for commercial advertising, and is particularly not for promoting a fraudulent business. NO VALID BUSINESS WORKS FOR NOTHING. The cost is hidden in there somewhere, and by failing to disclose it, the business is fraudulent.
I'm contacting the Better Business Bureau about this entire incident. If I have to, I'll also be contacting the office of the Ohio Secretary of State.
So you better call on every other business as well. Report Kroger cause they don’t tell you that the person ringing you up gets paid out of the money you spend there. Report McDonalds as well, goodness.Same dang thing. You know the final price, period.
I wish I had time like that on my hands.
Well, GuestZero, apparently you do not know how the insurance industry works. I get paid by commissions from the insurance companies and that is the only way I get paid. Contact any insurance carrier and they will tell you the same. I work out of my home (most independent agents do), so no need for the overhead cost of maintaining an office. Go ahead and contact whomever you please because I am not a "fraudulent" business nor was I "promoting" one. In fact, I display all insurance product brochures on my website, which explains EVERYTHING in detail. You will also see that the only so-called hidden charges are called "Surrender fees" with annuities and they aren't "hidden." They too are explained in the brochures and in my presentations to my customers. Unfortunately, these so-called hidden fees are usually attached to life insurance policies and I do not specifically sell those products...only if the customer asks about them. So, someone can only be fraudulent if they are hiding something. Just because I chose not to charge a fee for my service (because I am well taken care of by the insurance companies through commissions)does not mean that I have something to hide. Again, I appreciate your concern.
Guestzero,
Shame on you! You do not have the facts and you are spewing your false statements and that is slander! I met with Adams Financial and I did not pay a thing. She came to MY HOME, used her gas, sat with me for an hour and discussed my current investments. I think that you should make sure that you have the facts before you post crap like that on a site or you may find yourself in court fighting a slander case!
Just make sure they don't try to sell you an Indexed Annuity. But Caveat Emptor, as they say.
I won't even touch Indexed Annuities and I don't offer them either!
GuestZero - You've goofed here - big time. I'm not endorsing adamsfs' competancy as I don't have any experience with her, but she has correctly and accuratey and wholly disclosed how she is compensated. Her compensation by commission on the products she sells is standard industry practice. You owe her an apology. A big fat posted online apology.
I hardly need to apologize to anyone in contacting the Better Business Bureau for perceived fraud. There is no slander in being suspicious. The rest of you can continue to push emotionally-based perceptions of our legal system if you like, but I know what I'm doing, and you just DON'T.
P.S. Missv, what is so false in a statement that "no business works for nothing"?
Well, I'm sure the original comment my client left was not meant to cause this type of commotion. And as my client said, I don't pull any punches! Well, I'm not going to stop now!
GuestZero, your comments were not just "suspicious" as you say; they were downright blatant AND accusatory (i.e. "by failing to disclose it, the business is fraudulent") and you did not even have the facts. That is the problem with assumptions and you made those assumptions based on absolutely NOTHING, just your opinion and I suspect that you have obviously had a bad history with "fraudulent businesses" or you are just vengeful for whatever reason. Although, your "assumptions" and opinions are your first ammendment right; however, you are infringing on that right by, yes, slanderizing. The definition of slander is a malicioius, false, and defamatory statement or report. Before you make more assumptions about the definition of slander, why don't you go look it up? Better yet, just go to www.dictionary.com so you won't have to be too far from your computer. You seem to spend a lot of time on this site spewing your crap, as Missv said. It seems you have nothing better to do with your life than to sit in front of a computer and post almost 3,000 comments on this site alone. I'd hate to see other sites you have visited. And, yes, those are the F-A-C-T-S! Check out your "GuestZero" profile on this site -- 473 comments on the new version of "Toledo Talk" and 2287 comments on the old version.
By the way, where are your "facts" concerning me and the way I do business? You have NONE! I NEVER failed to disclose anything whatsoever. NEVER! NEVER! NEVER! And what makes you think that I failed to disclose anything? I am VERY ethical and I follow EVERY SINGLE LAW mandated by the State of Ohio! I AM PROUD OF THAT and I'll be damned if I'm going to let someone like you demean that in any way! It seems to me that you are overly paranoid for whatever reason. I never did anything to you to deserve the comments that you left. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Again, you made assumptions about someone (me in this case) without researching anything! I'm not going to slanderize you or your behavior at this point, because there is no need. You have shown your true colors all by yourself, just as you have done on your other posts. Take a bow, GuestZero, but don't hurt yourself in the process!
I have no dog in this fight and don't intend to weigh in on either side. However, as a casual observer, I would like to make a couple of corrections.
First of all, the US Constitution limits the power of government over citizens. So it only applies when one party is the government and the other is a citizen. Since you are both citizens, the Constitution is irrelevant here. It is not GZ's First Ammendment right to state his opinion. It is his God given, natural right to do so.
This point doesn't really change anything in the debate - but it drives me nuts when people make the mistake of thinking that the Constitution is some kind of rule book to manage people's relationships.
Second, I am pretty sure that if GZ has damaged adamsfs's reputation by posting false information here, it would be libel, not slander. Slander is the spoken word, libel is the written word.
Again, I don't think either point matters much - just offering some insight from the sidelines :)
On another note, I am not a lawyer, but from what I understand, when it comes to libel or slander, the test for "damages" is pretty high. I believe that adamfs would have to be able to monetize those damages. In other words (s)he would have to have to have pretty solid proof that business was lost and what the value was.
It seems to me in this case that if, in the mind of the many readers of this post, adamfs prevails in this debate, (s)he could actually end up with more business because of it.
To the extent that is the case, GZ might be able to claim that adamfs owes him a commission.
GZ's assumptions and nasty comments were uncalled for, whether it brings in more business for me or not. However, Babbleman, I do appreciate your corrections and response(s) and you're right, in this case it would be libel instead of slander. Either way, it is apparent that GZ should be taken with a grain a salt, as is apparent in other comments posted by this individual. I am not the only one who has been demeaned on this site by this person. Again, GZ has shown his/her true colors. I will continue to do business with the highest level of integrity, as I have always done. My feathers are not ruffled and I will continue to soar!
She doesn't charge? That doesn't make any sense. Why wouldn't she charge for her service?
posted by AmericanPie on Jul 29, 2008 at 04:36:50 pm #