Why does the injured party need their own structured settlement specialist?
There are some practical reasons for considering putting a Structured Settlement Specialist in your corner during a legal battle. Some of these reasons are:
1 Because you can! You need to have your own expert, an expert who is accountable and legally liable to you. The misconception that you have to use the defense structured settlement broker is completely false. A broker selected by the plaintiff, whether co-brokering or handling the entire case, does not cause the plaintiff to be in constructive receipt of the amount that will be used to fund the periodic payments.
2 Negotiation leverage: Many times as settlement consultants we are able to provide unique intelligence and insight into the negotiation process due to our experience in settling cases against many defendants/insurers. In addition, when rated ages are involved, knowing the rated age (i.e., life expectancy) that the life companies are willing to attach to your client’s injuries can provide a market based value for your life care plan as well as the case as a whole. In addition, whether the defendant has engaged their own settlement broker to “shop the market” can provide significant intelligence regarding their willingness to settle the case.
3 Fiduciary responsibility: The Defendant and their Insurer have their own expert in this critical area. That expert has fiduciary responsibility to the Defendant/Insurer. Who is looking out for your best interests? By retaining your own Structured Settlement Specialist, you get an expert with a legal duty to you, an expert charged with obtaining for you the highest yielding annuity package with the strongest possible carriers, and preventing the Defendant from possibly profiting from the placement of the annuity(ies) to fund your settlement.
4 Obtaining the most competitive and secure financial settlement for your client: There are numerous pricing breaks on the annuities used to fund the structured settlement. Daily rates, jumbo case discounts, age up-rates and other discounts are all available. Without your own expert, chances are that the Defendant/Insurer will capture these savings, instead of you.
5 Professional liability: At the time you sign the Settlement Agreement for your case, you are releasing everyone from the other side of the table. This includes their Structured Settlement Specialist, whom they called into your case. If their expert makes an error or omission, you probably will have a difficult time with recourse. Their expert is released from all future liability just as everyone else is that comes into the case through the Defendant/Insurer. Your expert has his own Errors and Omissions insurance policy; in case he makes a mistake (White House Settlement Consulting, LLC. carries a $5,000,000 policy). All the more reason to retain your own expert!
6 It doesn’t cost you anything! If a structured settlement annuity is used the life insurance company which provides the annuity pays our commission. If a structured settlement annuity is not used to settle the case then all we ask is if you felt that we provided value in your case then we are used on future cases and you refer us to others who we may help.