Practice Areas

• Birth Injury
• Delay in Cancer Diagnosis
• Nursing Home Negligence
• Undiagnosed Infections
• Heart Attacks Misdiagnosed

Blog

General

• Panel Sparks Controversy Again with New Prostate Cancer Screening Guidelines
• Doctor Misdiagnoses Woman and Fails to Complete Full Examination; Woman Dies Days Later!
• Study Finds Hospital Acquired Infections Greatly Impact ICU Deaths
• Medical Malpractice and Res Ipsa Loquitur: An Explanation
• Medical Malpractice Liability and Nurses; Why Nurses are being sued More and More Often

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News

Jury Project in Kingston, New York gets rave reviews...
Posted on 5/17/2012

Special Workshop for Lawyers about the benefits of Focus Groups on May 16th in Kingston, New York...
Posted on 4/27/2012

"Hot Coffee": A Movie you must see...
Posted on 11/14/2011

Kingston, New York medical malpractice lawyer speaks at Marist College...
Posted on 8/1/2011

Kingston, New York medical malpractice lawyer, John H. Fisher, receives highest "AV" rating from Martindale-Hubbell's Peer Reviewing Ratings...
Posted on 7/9/2011

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Library

General

• Discover how you can win your lawsuit by taking Three Simple Steps in Kingston, New York
• How I learned a lesson in life from a shyster lawyer
• The Day My Hero Died
• Discover how you can get the special services for your disabled child in an Individualized Education Plan in Kingston, New York
• Discover how you can get top-notch health insurance for your family for less than $200 a month in Kingston, New York

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Watch out for annuity providers that misrepresent the benefits of structured settlement annuities.

When a personal injury case settles, my goal is very simple for my clients: preservation of capital. This means making sure that my clients hold onto their money for the rest of their lives. Easier said than done. When a personal injury victim receives their check for a large settlement, 95% of them will spend, spend and then spend more until their money is gone. If you think this won't happen to you, guess again--it happens to almost all pesronal injury victims.

Is a structured settlement annuity the answer? Guaranteed stream of income that will give you monthly payments for the rest of your life. Sounds good? Not so fast. For the moment, let's forget about the historically low rates of return offered by annuities today (one of my clients was recently offered an annuity with an annual rate of return of 0.29%). Let's take a look at what you should watch out for when considering a structured settlement annuity.

When your case settles, the insurance company will present you with a dazzling array of structured annuity proposals. The annuity proposals will show mind-blowing figures for the "total payout" of the annuity during the life of the annuity. These often huge sums are designed to "wow you" into thinking you are getting the deal of the century. Not so fast, my friend.

Here's how it works: The life insurance company issuing the annuity will review your medical records to determine a "rated age" for you. The "rated age" means the substandard life expectancy that you have as a result of your injuries and medical conditions. For example, a 4 year child suffering from spastic quadriplegia may be given a "rated age" of 70 by the annuity company. This means that the annuity company believes that the 4 year old has the life expectancy that is equivalent to a healthy 70 year old, i.e., about 8 additional years of life.

The annuity company rarely discloses the rated age on its annuity proposals. However, the annuity proposals will contain astronomical figures reflecting the "total payout" over the duration of the annuity. What the annuity company does not tell you is that it is virtually impossible that you will ever receive payments equal to the "total payout" in its proposal. Why, you ask?

The "total payout" represents a sum of money that the annuity beneficiary will receive if he/she lives to the statistical life expectancy of a normal, healthy person of the same age. For example, a 4 year old infant has a statistical life expectancy of an additional 76 years and the "total payout" figure on the annuity proposal reflects payments over that 76 year period.

Unfortunately, the annuity provider has already determined that the 4 year old suffering from cerebral palsy will not live an additional 76 years. In fact, the annuity provider has determined, through its review of the infant's medical records, that the child will only live an additional 8 years. Thus, it is misleading for the annuity proposal to provide an astronomical "total payout" reflecting a number of years of payments that it knows it will never pay.

The "total payout" figure is put on the annuity proposal for a specific reason: to entice the injury victim to buy the annuity. It is simply misleading for the annuity provider to put huge dollars figures for a "total payout" in the proposal, when it has already determined that it will never pay that sum.

Annuity proposals will never disclose the 4% commission that they charge on annuities. Don't you think it's a good idea to know how much you are being charged for the annuity? Annuity providers don't.

At a minimum, you should know that annuity proposals can be very misleading and provide an inaccurate picture of what you are really getting. Make sure you get the facts before you buy.

Video Library

General:

• Personal Injury Attorney In New York Is Motivated By The Difference His Case Results Make In Peoples Lives
• How To Know Which Law Firm Is Right For You According To Medical Malpractice Attorney In New York
• Knowing You Are The Victim Of Medical Malpractice Can Be Tricky According To New York Attorney

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FAQ

General

• What is the best way to reduce (or even eliminate) photocopy expenses in your law practice in Kingston, New York?
• Why you should never pay attention to lawyer advertisements when hiring a lawyer in Kingston, New York?
• What is the #1 way to defeat a subrogation claim against your injury compensation in New York?

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