Life Settlements

How Dean Vagnozzi’s Clients Lost Bets On The Dead

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Since financial adviser Dean Vagnozzi was charged with fraud in a government lawsuit in July, he has been castigated by regulators for how he steered customers to Par Funding, a Philadelphia lender founded by a twice-convicted felon. With his heavy radio advertising and free steak sales dinners, Vagnozzi, 51, touted alternatives to Wall Street.

Source: How Dean Vagnozzi’s Clients Lost Bets On The Dead

Actually the title to the original article is misleading.

Don’t bet on people dying to make your profits. Unfortunately some people do just that.

Life Partners founder Brian Pardo lived well in Waco, Texas, for a time. Pardo bought four planes and a yacht along with such artifacts as replicas of an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus and a pharaoh’s throne. His business eventually sold $2.4 billion in policies to 20,000 investors.

But in 2010 the Wall Street Journal reported that Pardo’s firm was relying heavily on an assembly-line doctor who was systematically under-predicting life expectancies. Life Partners’ sellers were living a lot longer than predicted — very good for them but hard on investors paying years of premiums without collecting death benefits,

https://insurancenewsnet.com/oarticle/how-clients-of-an-advisor-facing-fraud-complaint-lost-bets-on-the-dead?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-clients-of-an-advisor-facing-fraud-complaint-lost-bets-on-the-dead#

I’ve never been a fan of the life settlement business.

Never accept one of those free steak dinner offers.

Life Settlements Update – 09.28.11

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Delaware Court Weighs in on Life Settlement Cases – Regulatory,Legislative and Tax Issues – Life and Health Insurance News

In PHL Variable vs. Price Dawe 2006 Insurance Trust Insurance Company, the court has affirmed the common law ability of a legally insured person or insurable trust to sell a policy on that person’s life for market value — provided that procurement of the policy is not part of a straw purchase pursuant to a prior agreement to resell to an investor, and that the procurement is not part of an illegal wager in which a third party directly or indirectly pays the premiums.

The court holds that an arrangement involving an agreement with a straw man is illegal. An illegal arrangement occurs when an investor has a pre-negotiated arrangement for an immediate transfer of ownership of the policy, and there is no insurable interest on the part of the original owner, according to the court.

The court has ruled that the “intent” of the insured to sell a policy is irrelevant. The transaction itself is legal if, at inception, the individual procuring the policy has insurable interests and does not have a pre-negotiated agreement to immediately transfer ownership.

Setback for Life Settlements – WSJ.com

Life Partners Announces Auditor Resignation

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Hmmm.  I got the following press release in my email today.

WACO, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Life Partners Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ GS: LPHI), a leader in the life settlements industry, announced today that it has been advised by Eide Bailly LLP that the firm has resigned as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm effective January 13, 2010.

The decision to change auditors was not the result of any disagreements between the Company and Eide Bailly on any matter of accounting principles or practices, financial statement disclosures, or auditing scope or procedure.

“We commend Eide Bailly for their professionalism and hard work during their tenure and have enjoyed working with them,” said Tad Ballantyne, Chairman of the Audit Committee.

The Company is conducting a thorough and immediate evaluation involving discussions with several highly experienced accounting firms and expects to announce Eide Bailly’s successor within the next few weeks. Eide Bailly has assured the Company that they will assist in making a seamless transition to the firm ultimately chosen by the Company’s Audit Committee.

The Company does not anticipate the change in auditors will delay the filing of its annual report due on May 14, 2010.

Life Partners is the world’s oldest and one of the most active companies in the United States engaged in the secondary market for life insurance, commonly called “life settlements.” Since its incorporation in 1991, Life Partners has completed over 100,000 transactions for its worldwide client base of approximately 25,000 high net worth individuals and institutions in connection with the purchase of over 6,200 policies totaling over $2.2 billion in face value.

Safe Harbor – This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. The statements in this news release that are not historical statements, including statements regarding future financial performance, the market for our services, the growth in the life settlement market and our growth within that market, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. For information concerning these risks and uncertainties, see our most recent Form 10-K. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law.