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The Value of an Agent, Advisor, or Consultant

  • Writer: David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU®
    David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU®
  • Sep 26, 2018
  • 3 min read

Updated: Jan 18, 2023



One of the tests of a valuable agent is that they are available for service and advice AFTER the sale. Unfortunately, insurance company customer service is NOT a source of advice. They can tell you what you CAN do and they will do what you REQUEST of them… but not necessarily give you ideas on the best ways to go.

Case in point: Back in 2000, my father experienced a downturn in his business. He runs a county-owned (or state owned - depending on California politics) cafeteria and it’s one of the busiest in the State of California. At this time, the county (or the state) decided it was time to do an extensive remodeling of that large dining room area (you could easily fit about 500 people in it) and turn it into a juror’s waiting area instead. The construction took many months and, due to the noise and dust, most regular customers chose not to eat there for quite some time.

This downturn caused my father to sell the custom home he had and move into a rental property. He did what most of us would do – which is to “tighten our belts”.

However, he also CANCELED 3 of his whole life policies that he had bought many years prior. Why did he CANCEL these policies? Because he didn’t want to pay on them anymore AND he needed to access the cash values.

Did he call his agent for ideas and advice? No.

Did he call any other agent or advisor for ideas and advice? No.

He just DID it.

And he regrets it to this day.

Why? Well, once *I* got fully trained and skilled in how life insurance worked, and I explained how life insurance policy loans worked… he wished he would’ve done that instead of cancelling the policies. He could've paid loan interest and paused some premium payments for a while, instead of cancelling the majority of his protection portfolio.

My father’s health isn’t necessarily the greatest either. He’s under-height for his weight. :-) He has epilepsy and does have Grand Mal seizures every few years. He’s also legally blind. Today, he can get coverage… but it’s highly rated (meaning it’s more expensive) than what he would’ve paid if he would have kept his policies, borrow against them… rather than cancelling them.

Today, my father still has a “key man” policy on himself – a Variable Whole Life policy. It was originally sold as a “Supplemental Life Insurance Retirement Plan” as it was over-funded, but has a decent sized death benefit.

However, because he had cancelled his other policies, and he didn’t make payments on this variable whole life policy for about 8 years (yet the policy still stayed in force during the 2000-2002 AND through the crash of 2008 – that’s how I know it was structured properly), the ROLE of that policy has now changed… and it is now his primary source of insurance protection… and it wasn’t originally meant to be that way when it was originally sold.

Strangely enough – no one called my father regarding paying on his remaining in-force policy. It wasn’t until I had started at that particular agency when I had the policy transferred to me to be the “broker of record” on the policy and I encouraged my father to start making payments on the policy again. (No one else in the prior agency made any calls!)

Clients and Customers: Do YOU have a quality life insurance and annuity agent / advisor / consultant that YOU can count on for ideas and advice that won’t cost you and your family your protection? When was the last time you REVIEWED your total coverage - not just the amount of death benefits, but ensuring that your policy and premium payments are on track to ensure that the policy will do what you bought it to do?

Agents: (Because I know a bunch of insurance agents read my stuff): Are YOU keeping in touch with your clients so that they know they can count on you for ideas and advice to help them from making COSTLY mistakes?

Phone & Text:

(951) 313-8208

Regulatory Disclosure: Not Legal, Tax, or Securities Investment Advice:

The material discussed on this web site is meant for general illustration and/or informational purposes only and it is not to be construed as tax, legal, or investment advice, nor does it represent any specific company or specific products.  David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU® is not registered nor licensed as a Registered Investment Advisory Firm (RIA), Investment Advisor Representative (IAR), nor as a Registered Representative (RR) with any broker/dealer firm, and is therefore not registered with, or supervised by, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), or any state securities regulatory office.  As such, David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU® does not provide investment advice, specifically: buying, selling, holding, risk analysis, or any other analysis of securities, nor the asset allocation of securities portfolios. For specific investment advice on your securities investment portfolio, please contact a licensed and registered investment professional in your state.

David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU® does offer general investment information for educational purposes and may propose alternative financial strategies that do not contain or include securities. He does also discuss the pros and cons of various kinds of accounts (such as IRS regulated retirement plans) and is considered incidental advice surrounding various strategies and solutions, but does not necessarily constitute advice on the underlying securities.  

 

For tax or legal services and advice, please consult a licensed professional in your state.  Although the information has been gathered from sources believed to be reliable, please note that individual situations can vary and the information should be relied upon only when coordinated with individual professional advice.

David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU® is a life, accident & health insurance agent in California (CA Insurance License #0E54187) and can easily be licensed to do business in other states. David Kinder Insurance and Financial Wealth Solutions is the marketing name for David H. Kinder, RFC®, ChFC®, CLU® and is not affiliated with any other company. David Kinder Financial Consulting and Analysis Services offers separate financial analysis services that may be appropriate, offered by engagement agreement, and on a fee-for-service basis that does not offset commissions earned through product placement.  Any recommendations through these services can be implemented with any licensed professional the client chooses, including David Kinder Insurance and Financial Wealth Solutions.

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