Already the scams begin and better to know some of them now then later when it’s too late.
Be on alert and make sure that you question the plan you are getting that it will serve the purpose you want. Include examples to your agent this is how to best combat scams or even ones that may actually be unintentional by insurance agents. Id rather it be a problem caused by ignorance as in not knowing then to stick people with plans because that is what they may only available.
Many of those who have encountered fraud have already used washable incontinence pads from the pharmacy by Onfy. It is doubly unpleasant to become a victim of a crime when your health is no longer very good.
Already the scams begin to come out of the woodwork and feel it our job to announce the negatives as well as information about the positives regarding Critical illness coverages. In this case its so undetectable that you may hardly call it a scam but what is a flim flam scam anyway? Well we could quote the dictionary, but we all can agree that is getting into something that we thought was disguised as something else, typically a knowing party (perhaps agent) providing the service or product has a deceptive practice (often ill gotten gains) when knowingly providing that service under false pretenses as to its coverage. Perhaps not having the coverage and masking it under some other coverage, and using words to make it sound good is unethical. With people, especially insurance or finances, that agent has a fiduciary responsibility to look out for the well being of their client.
This particular incidence came about while testing other insurance carriers and their agents to see how their practices might be. The only reason we do not mention the company is avoid potential liabilities, mud slinging wars, or perhaps that the agent shouldn’t black eye the entire company, etc., In this case… best to provide the information to the public so that they understand what to look for and can learn and provide the information as a service. Always investigate before you invest.
The Scam
While on the surface it doesn’t seen to be such a scandal, it truly is unethical. When calling upon a well known company, whose products, reputation and service may be good, in this case got overshadowed by the agent pushing a product I didn’t ask for and telling me it was the same insurance protection I was looking for. Why? Simply because he didn’t have that product available. A coverage plan that could easily to the public (as unknown as Critical illness insurance is present day) be manipulated to be the critical illness protection they inquired about getting. Disguising a disability insurance product as a critical illness insurance policy and cloud the judgement of a unknowing client in to thinking that this is what they were getting. Worse yet, if disability insurance didn’t work on me, the back up product being sold was LTC or Long term care insurance. When instead all along this client, (me in this case) knowing the clear difference between the two plans made CERTAIN to explain exactly what was looking for. In so much as they advertise on the internet “critical illness insurance”, I have not seen CII it listed in fact on their products list on their website at all. Hmmm..
When I left my contact information to call me I stated what I was looking for very specifically and the common person might not know about the product as well as we do here, could just say “I don’t know what product it is, but are looking for something that covers if out of work and cant because I got cancer and and and..” Then can be easily coerced into getting a policy they think they got coverage for but really was entirely something else. Time to get educated.
The Call Back
For whatever reason I missed the call. The message left said Hi sir I’m with_____ insurance and I was told you called and your looking for a disability policy please call me at___”
I called and said:
“They may have stated something different, I was looking for a critical illness type policy one that would cover me if I had some sort of critical illness?”
He retorted- “Yes of course in case you are disabled and like maybe cancer or something disabling?”
Wow how could I say no? It made sense the way he said it. At this point anyone can see this is leading…leading to disability insurance and not what I called for critical illness insurance. Again though no person outside the insurance world would know the difference. So I made to clarify
ME- “Yes… but again, just to be sure in case I get like cancer or heart attack or something I need money to cover what the health insurance will not cover like replace income or deductible or co insurance or clinical trials god forbid…money if diagnosed”
Agent-Yes, he said “You need money to replace income and cover what health insurance does in case your disabled cant work lets say due to whatever critical illness may occur and you’ll need that money for what health insurance wont cover that’s correct.”
Before I knew it I was being sold unbeknownst to the common consumer a disability insurance policy and not what I had called for , ask for, and wanted, and yet being told it is exactly what I’m looking for. Insulted and appalling. If agents are being told that disability insurance is a critical illness insurance policy because they get money if they are disabled and it happens to be cancer or something they should be ashamed of themselves and in the case of many purchasing disability plans instead of critical illness they will only find out when an incident occurs and they don’t get what they thought they had coverage for. Worse yet in this case I knew what he was pulling, and, when disability insurance didn’t work on me he said well then the only other alternative for getting money I think you’ll like is Long Term Care” Wrong again! Stating what the plan name was, telling him how lump sum worked he knew in this case but really suggested I get what he was selling.
I let him provide a quote he asked how much I make. Why he said that is how they begin the coverage quote. Incorrect since it matters not what you make as to the price of coverage as that is not part of the quoting process. It is however for disability insurance. He said if you make $100k for example I can get $5,000 a month for 6 months a year or even 2 years. eh eh goes the buzzer…Critical illness pays a lump sum up front unless a defined expense benefit or indemnity type plan then it would pay a certain amount per day or time per procedure outlined often like Aflac policies have rather than a large upfront cash benefit.
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The Joke
Okay how much does your disability or even LTC plan cost?
Well to bring in $X,xxx amount a month it will be one hundred and…
What?! Critical illness policies cost starting at $20 a month, average about $40 a month, I can get $40k for me in hand up front when I need it upon diagnosis and you want me to get LTC at 38 for purposes of getting a critical illness for how much?” Now I am no salesman for LTC but some individuals at the center are and they are two very different policies and not at all a critical illness lump sum policy. LTC products have their place, but not for me, not what I am looking for, UGH!
Disability insurance vs critical illness insurance in explaining it to a client, I can see how it can be clearly made to present it to a novice client as exactly how the agent wants to mold it, and now has two markets instantly. Shameless. Now if the agent didn’t know that’s not okay but less immoral, but here I made it clear simply because I asked for the product by name and finally stated to him I know the difference and what your wanting to sell me is a disability plan even though I made it clear the policy by name. Disability pays you a portion of what your salary is about 60% and any critical illness insurance that has a disability insurance rider (such as Assurity life sells) has it there for a reason BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT THE SAME! I am not promoting Assurity other than to site a example as to how different the two are and, if they were the same it would be like buying a critical illness insurance policy with a critical illness insurance rider…what?? Exactly! If want to get a critical illness disability insurance policy that is fine to get both by having a rider. Not by promoting combined insurance that it is one in the same as it is, an calling it disability insurance.
Make sure that what you are getting in a lump sum critical illness insurance policy is a designated amount of money given to you when diagnosed with a covered critical illness such as cancer stroke heart attack and others depending upon policy. If you are selling disability insurance as critical illness insurance and hope to receive a lump sum and find out that you have to wait to receive payments that are about 60% of your salary because you are disabled regardless of a it being a critical illness or not does not make for a critical illness policy. To know I’ve made it so clear to the agent going beyond what the normal everyday person might know and be specific in asking for and still being sold a disability policy… well its immoral.
So…you say, you thought you were covered eh?
This story could have ended very badly but instead has a happy ending. The good is that it was me calling as a test and reporting the need to know public service announcement. How it could have ended and will for a lot of hard working Americans whom purchased from a quote “trusted source” is financial disaster. Imagine dad falls ill to cancer, paralysis or some other covered critical illness, and suddenly goes to claim on insurance and winds up having to wait wait only to receive 60% of his income monthly, gain more bills and have less money to live on the same lifestyle prior to diagnosis! Even with most having health insurance (near 80%) over 60% of bankruptcies came due to medical bankruptcy. Instead of what he could have gotten, which is to not be financially burdened, and get maybe $40,000 cash up front as a forty year old for about $40 a month. (get quote as rates vary and this is an example) If want to get a disability policy get one, if want to know the difference between the two it is explained herein and also can visit by clicking
Many stories end well when people go to the doctor on time and use medication for oral thrush over-the-counter by Onfy.
Critical illness insurance vs disability insurance.