A Look Ahead at the Life Insurance Settlements Industry in 2011

Senior life settlements will continue to rise, as increased government regulation establishes consistent rules across the country.

The senior life settlements industry is showing no signs of slowing down. More people than ever before are considering receiving immediate financial benefits from their life insurance policy by entering into an arrangement with a broker. Increased regulatory and industry oversight has improved the stature of the industry, giving consumers more confidence in working with life settlement brokers. This has led to a growing number of investment firms making senior life settlements part of their long-term financial planning strategies for clients.

So what will the life settlements industry look like in 2011? Here are a few predictions for changes that might occur in the industry in the coming year:

Increased Broker Interaction: The industry has recently shifted away from a model where the producer or investor can handle a transaction and to a model where life insurance brokers act as the intermediary between investors and policy holders. Recent regulatory changes have supported this model, making it increasingly difficult for people other than licensed brokers to handle many steps in the process. Further regulation and industry oversight should increase reliance on third-party brokers in 2011.

More Regulation: Currently, around 20 percent of states do not have specific regulations in place for dealing with the senior life settlement industry. However, this number could dwindle in 2011, as many state legislatures are considering bills that would create or tighten regulations on the industry. Many people within the industry support increased enforcement and regulation as well, as it provides credibility to the concept of life settlements.

Privacy Concerns: One of the biggest issues in the life insurance settlements industry is the occasional lack of oversight of privacy issues. Agents, brokers and investors can transmit sensitive, private information about a policy over unsecure methods of distribution such as fax or email. Expect a greater push toward using secure distribution methods for sensitive information.