Complaint Review: Primerica Financial Services - West Palm Beach Florida

Most CFP's I know, do not have insurance licenses. If you are in the business to help people be debt free than why do you need an insurance license? Is that a smokescreen tactic to get into the door to sell expensive term insurance? I have been approached by a PFS agent and their thing was refinance and get rid of my debt and then I will have some money to buy some of their term insurance, also was asked if I was willing to do the same thing they were doing. I am not naive and I do educate myself in the financial services, I believe if you want to believe in the philosophy, buy term & invest the difference, there are other companies out there with cheaper term and thus leaving you more money to invest. Do more research if you are approached by this tactic analyze your situation, if you want to refinance your debt, go to a bank or mortgage broker, if you want insurance, i'm sure you'll find a whole lot more in the yellow pages with more experience who will find something to meet your needs rather than offer you a one size fits all product like primerica.

Most CFP's I know, do not have insurance licenses. If you are in the business to help people be debt free than why do you need an insurance license? Is that a smokescreen tactic to get into the door to sell expensive term insurance? I have been approached by a PFS agent and their thing was refinance and get rid of my debt and then I will have some money to buy some of their term insurance, also was asked if I was willing to do the same thing they were doing. I am not naive and I do educate myself in the financial services, I believe if you want to believe in the philosophy, buy term & invest the difference, there are other companies out there with cheaper term and thus leaving you more money to invest. Do more research if you are approached by this tactic analyze your situation, if you want to refinance your debt, go to a bank or mortgage broker, if you want insurance, i'm sure you'll find a whole lot more in the yellow pages with more experience who will find something to meet your needs rather than offer you a one size fits all product like primerica.

Most CFP's I know, do not have insurance licenses. If you are in the business to help people be debt free than why do you need an insurance license? Is that a smokescreen tactic to get into the door to sell expensive term insurance? I have been approached by a PFS agent and their thing was refinance and get rid of my debt and then I will have some money to buy some of their term insurance, also was asked if I was willing to do the same thing they were doing. I am not naive and I do educate myself in the financial services, I believe if you want to believe in the philosophy, buy term & invest the difference, there are other companies out there with cheaper term and thus leaving you more money to invest. Do more research if you are approached by this tactic analyze your situation, if you want to refinance your debt, go to a bank or mortgage broker, if you want insurance, i'm sure you'll find a whole lot more in the yellow pages with more experience who will find something to meet your needs rather than offer you a one size fits all product like primerica.

I was a PFS representative at one time. This type of business is not for everybody, regardless of their education. A sales (commission) only business is very risky. I did do very well when I was recruited and did make some good part time income. I was actually recruited by a relative who is doing very well and has since left her fulltime job. I beleive in their goals about helping people get out of debt and being financially free. This takes time and the average family cannot afford to save money because they live paycheck to paycheck. Primerica does give people the opportunity to succeed. I received my insurance license which has enabled me to understand my own insurance need. I can pick apart any insurance policy and actually understand it. Everyone has something bad to say about something, but until you gave 100% into it and educated yourself you cannot take someone else's word for it. I decided on my own to get out of this business because I already make a high income and wanted to spend more time with my family. I still have my license but now I just give my referals to my relative. Like I said this is a sales business and like in all sales it is a tough business. If you dont work you dont get paid. You will have to invest alot of your free time, and work hard. There is nothing in life that is free and if you read about every successfull business person in this world they will definitely have a story to tell. What are your Goals?

I am not, and do not represent myself as, a financial advisor or analyst. If I were a certified financial planner, advisor or analyst, then I would know the answer. At least I am honest enough to tell you the truth. And again, a more experienced PFS representative can give you that answer. I have only been with PFS for a few months. It takes time to get licensed in all areas and to build a business. Have you no patience? When someone has questions that I don't know the answers to, I ask a more experienced representative or research the answer myself. I believe most clients appreciate this type of honesty. It's the people who profess to know everything and have to explain to their client that they were wrong that people have trouble trusting. Who would you rather do business with? Someone who is willing to find the correct answer or someone who will give an unresearched or incorrect answer and then admit that they were wrong? How much damage can be done if the incorrect advice is taken - only to find out it was wrong? A lot. Isn't it better to be patient, research the correct answer and then proceed? It is so sad to see how cynical the human race has become that they can no longer dare to dream and are so paranoid. Granted - there are many, many reasons to be paranoid as a consumer these days. However, I chose to look for the good and have faith both in myself and the potential of my business. There will always be something good and something bad that can be said. I entered an original rebuttal to educate the people who don't understand that we are each in business for ourselves and run our businesses according to our own ethics. Some people will be solid gold and some will be tarnished. That is the way of the world. I wrote in defense of myself and my Primerica business. I do not speak for nor am I responsible for how anyone else runs their business. You will believe what you want to believe. I believe in myself, what I do with Primerica and how I run my business. I also believe in the power of positive thinking and I will no longer continue to answer rebuttals on this website. I believe it was Abraham Lincoln who said, "Look for the bad in people and you will find it. Look for the bood in people and you will find it." I look for the good. So should we all.

Caitlin, I could not agree with you more. Denise, a true financial advisor could have answered my simple question. It seems to me that you are unsure of your answer. I have no more further question. Thank you

Denise, If you don't know the difference between fee-based and commission-based services, you shouldn't be in the financial services industry. Both terms have industry standard definitions; ones that any good financial advisor would know before beginning business. How are you going to respond when a prospective client asks the same question?

Denise, If you don't know the difference between fee-based and commission-based services, you shouldn't be in the financial services industry. Both terms have industry standard definitions; ones that any good financial advisor would know before beginning business. How are you going to respond when a prospective client asks the same question?

Denise, If you don't know the difference between fee-based and commission-based services, you shouldn't be in the financial services industry. Both terms have industry standard definitions; ones that any good financial advisor would know before beginning business. How are you going to respond when a prospective client asks the same question?

Denise, If you don't know the difference between fee-based and commission-based services, you shouldn't be in the financial services industry. Both terms have industry standard definitions; ones that any good financial advisor would know before beginning business. How are you going to respond when a prospective client asks the same question?

Jon, I am sorry to admit I don't know the difference between fee-only and commission. To my knowledge, we are commission-based. I only have my life license at the moment and have earned commission so far. Once I begin working with mortgages and investments, I will know first-hand how the compensation is calculated on those products. My suggestion would be to speak to an RVP in your area. They will know the answer.

Denise, Hi, I'm just wondering, if you are being compensated on a fee-only basis rather than by brokerage commissions. Just wondering.

I was directed to this website by a friend who researched Primerica after I had an appointment with them and one of them came to our corporate overview meeting. I have worked for another sales company selling water treatment systems. They educated me in the field of sales. Sales is service - if you choose to be a professional salesperson. I am not uneducated. However, your dreams and goals are emotional and that is why you are motivated to work harder - to achieve those dreams and goals. Everyone knows that being in business for yourself is risky - it doesn't always pay off. But everyone would agree that you most likely will never achieve your goals and dreams by being someone else's employee. I am a very hard, conscientious and HONEST worker. The only way for me to get paid what I'm worth is to be in a sales organization where I am rewarded by my hard work. The harder I work, the more money I make. That is not to say I will get rich overnight. Even the million dollar/year earners in our company took between 5 to 10 years to get there. Can you do that working for someone else in a 9-5 job? Sales has a very bad reputation because of bad sales practices. But we are not all bad. The meetings we attend are for emotional support and to pump us up - to help motivate us to work a little harder to reach our goals and dreams. Does your average 9-5 job even CARE what your goals and dreams are? Much less help you achieve them. We also receive sales training. Most of the people we prospect do not have financial or sales backgrounds because it is better to teach someone the "company" way than to bring in bad habits from prior experience. This is true in almost every sales organization. That does not mean that these people are uneducated. And what is so bad about being uneducated? How many hard working, honest people are denied well-paying employment because they don't have a piece of paper saying they graduated from college? (Side note: we also have many degreed individuals in Primerica from all different fields. None of which ever helped them reach their personal goals or dreams.) Yes, most of us work part-time and keep a regular dayjob. That's because it takes time to build any business. Besides we have consumers that believe we are only after their money and other companies that would say anything to discredit us because our success is their failure. No company is perfect. If you find one, let me know. I have found no illegal practices in Primerca to-date. If they ever ask me to do something illegal, I will leave. The fees that are paid go for your licenses. These are state or federal fees that can be verified (which are tax-deductible expenses, by the way). I was NEVER asked to pay to JOIN. I paid to get licensed - to have the opportunity to produce above-average income for my family. Every person is entitled to their opinion, but not everyone will agree with it. Sales is not for everyone. If anyone has encountered "shady" recruiting methods elsewhere by Primerica, I am sorry. Just remember - that person made their choice to do that. We are not all the same. We operate through Primerica, but we are in business for ourselves - we are independent contractors. In other words, that individual runs their business differently than I do. If you judge all Primerica representatives to be "rip-offs" or "frauds" or "bad", it's the same kind of sterotyping prejudice that kept women from voting and African-Americans from drinking from the same water fountains as white people. Just because sales or being in business for yourself is too risky for you, don't judge the rest of us who want to earn a decent, HONEST living by providing only what our customers WANT, NEED and can AFFORD as a SERVICE to them. I conduct MY Primerica business in an HONEST and professional manner. Maybe you should come see me!