Copyright ©2004 Wall Street Instructors, Inc. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of Wall Street Instructors, Inc.
|
GLOSSARY
Apparent authority
|
Apparent authority is authority that is not provided by contract nor intended by the insurer but which appears to the client to be given to the agent based upon the agent's believable statements.
|
Approach step
|
The approach step in the sales process is generally the first meeting of the practitioner with the prospect. The purpose of the approach step of the sales process is to cause the prospective client to come to the understanding that the practitioner is someone with whom he or she may want to do business as a result of the rapport that has been created.
|
Balanced comparison
|
A "balanced" comparison is one that compares all of the important features of the products and examines the advantages and disadvantages of both products.
|
Caveat emptor
|
Caveat emptor is a term that encapsulated the judicial approach to product liability in the first half of the 20th century. The term translates to "let the buyer beware."
|
Caveat vendor
|
Caveat vendor translates to "let the seller beware." It represents a heightened product and process liability on the part of sellers.
|
Churning
|
Churning is the practice of excessive trading in a client's securities account for the primary purpose of generating commissions for the practitioner. The practice holds no benefit for the client and is forbidden.
|
Common law
|
Common law is that body of English law and concepts that grew out of the English judicial system. It was this law-based principally on the decisions and opinions of law courts-that became the law in the English colonies. Augmented by legislation, that common law constitutes much of our current system of laws.
|
Compliance
|
When we talk about compliance, we are really talking about particular rules of conduct-in some cases made into law-that are designed to promote the interests of all of the parties to a transaction.
|
Course of conduct and custom doctrine
|
The Course of Conduct and Custom Doctrine considers the way that people have previously done business. It takes into account the manner in which the parties to the transaction had handled their dealings together over a period of time to determine what is reasonable conduct.
|
Estoppel
|
In the case of estoppel, the client gives up a right as a result of his or her actions without intending to give it up.
|
Ethics
|
In practical terms, ethics is a system or code of principles that directs our actions towards others.
|
Express authority
|
Express authority is contractual-given authority. It is given to the agent through his or her contract with the insurer and any amendments made by the company to that contract.
|
Fact-finding interview
|
Although sometimes accomplished in a separate meeting, fact-finding often flows directly and easily from the opening interview and is an extension of it. The object of the fact-finding interview is to gather sufficient information to support a recommendation that is suitable to the client's situation and consistent with his or her objectives and tolerance for risk.
|
Fiduciary duty
|
A fiduciary duty is a duty that results from the holding in trust of something of worth for another. A person with a fiduciary duty is generally held to a higher standard of performance.
|
Golden Rule
|
The Golden Rule maintains that each of us should treat others as he or she would wish to be treated.
|
Implied authority
|
Implied authority comes from the powers that the company customarily gives its agents rather than from the contract between the agent and the insurer. An example of implied authority can be seen in the insurer's giving the agent the express authority to solicit applications for life insurance on its behalf; by giving the agent that express authority, it also gave the agent the implied authority to telephone prospects on its behalf to arrange sales appointments.
|
Life insurance illustration
|
Life insurance illustrations are hypothetical constructs that show how the policy would perform under a given set of financial assumptions. The assumptions upon which any illustration is based may not prove to be correct. Life insurance dividends, costs and interest rates will almost certainly not be as illustrated and may be higher or lower than shown.
|
Opening interview
|
The first substantive interview in the sale process is usually the opening interview. The principal function of the opening interview is to continue to develop the rapport created in the approach step. The opening interview leads directly into the fact-finding interview.
|
Presentation interview
|
The purpose of the presentation interview is to present to the prospect a solution to a need that he or she has admitted having. It is the matching of an insurance or investment product to the prospect's requirements.
|
Profession
|
Three components are necessary for an occupation or business to be considered a profession.
1. Specialized knowledge
2. A "service before income" outlook and
3. A code of professional ethics
|
Ratification
|
Ratification is the confirmation or approval of an agent's actions by the principal.
|
Rebating
|
Rebating involves the giving or promising of a valuable consideration intended to be an inducement to the buyer to purchase an insurance policy. The inducement may be cash or any other item of value. Generally, any gift greater than a nominal one could be considered a valuable consideration and a violation of rebating rules.
|
Registered investment adviser (RIA)
|
A person involved in the sale of financial advice or counsel for a fee. An RIA must be registered with the SEC or the states in which he or she does business, depending upon various criteria.
|
Sales process
|
The sum total of the steps taken in the sale of a product or service.
|
Vanishing premiums
|
"Vanishing premiums" is a phrase that is often the cause of customers' claiming unethical sales practices. The concept involves the payment of life insurance premiums through the use of policy dividends.
|
Waiver
|
Waiver is a defense that involves the voluntary and intentional giving up of a right the individual knows he or she has.
|
|