My New Year’s resolution is to always tell the truth no matter whose buttons it pushes. I’ve been bullied into backing off of a few blog posts in the past but life’s too short and life insurance and your budget are too important. Feathers will be ruffled, not just for the sake of ruffling, but because people like you and your family and friends aren’t being treated right when it comes to buying you life insurance through the Zander agency.

I spoke with a couple today who are undergoing financial transformation through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. I strongly recommend Dave’s guidelines for getting out of debt and getting a grip on your financial life by sticking to a budget. I have facilitated several Dave Ramsey courses at my church. I’ve always liked the way Dave calls spending too much on credit card debt as a “stupid tax”. And he’s right. I used to pay that stupid tax every month and was relieved when I put credit cards in their proper place. Dave advocates having an emergency fund and and now I have one. He goes on and on about not paying too much for things. He says you should always ask, “Is that the best you can do?” That little tip alone has saved me a lot of money.

But here’s the quandary. Dave has a network of financial advisers around the country that he recommends. He’s practically got them down to the nearest block from you. But when it comes to life insurance he recommends one agency, Zander Insurance. I’ve had my tiffs with Zander over the years because they don’t seem to really follow Dave Ramsey’s philosophy of getting the best deal and protecting your budget.

I talked with a couple today, and as part of their financial makeover they are going to get rid of some permanent insurance and get term life insurance. They took Dave’s advice and called Zander Insurance. After interviewing them they were both quoted at preferred plus with ING Reliastar. After the application process, the husband was approved at preferred plus, but the wife was approved at standard. The reason for standard was a history of being treated for a very minor mood disorder. She had told them about that treatment during the interview but they quoted ING preferred plus anyway, without shopping it.

There was a time when ING might have been the company for her, but they have undergone some underwriting rethinking in the last year and are no longer mood disorder friendly. That’s why I never assume the outcome of an application. I always shop cases to make sure my clients get the best value. So, we shopped her information and we got a preferred plus offer, saving her over $1000 a year. So, Zander, is that the best you can do? They told her that it was a reasonable offer and she should take it. The policy we are acquiring for her will save her $30,000 over 30 years.

But that’s not even the egregious part of this whole thing. I know a lot of big agencies have really juicy contracts with ING and common old life insurance shoppers believe, especially when Dave Ramsey tells them too, that the rate they are being quoted is the best for them. The husband got approved for a 20 year term policy by ING at preferred plus. He is one of those guys that can get preferred plus with any company. So I ran quotes on him and ING at preferred plus isn’t even in the top 10 best rates in the country. ING was over $100 a year more than he needs to be paying with a comparable company. Over 30 years that is over $3000. He wasn’t quoted the lower rates with the other companies. He was led to believe that he was offered the best quote Zander Insurance could give.

I don’t know if Zander has some cozy thing going with ING, but, they sure don’t seem to care if they over charge their clients and act as if they are getting the best deal. Micah 6:11 says “Can I justify wicked scales and a bag of deceptive weights”? Dave Ramsey says he is a good Christian man. I don’t have any reason to doubt that, but if that is the case then he has not done his due diligence and is recommending that people pay a stupid tax to Zander Insurance. The only other possibility is that Dave isn’t as good a Christian as he claims and he is intentionally turning a blind eye.

Bottom Line

All is not as it is claimed by Dave Ramsey and at Zander Insurance. The couple above would have spent $33,000 to much on their life insurance by sticking with Zander. Stupid tax? If you have any questions or have bought life insurance from Zander and want to know if you got the best deal, call or email me directly. My name is Ed Hinerman. Let’s talk.