 |
Structured Settlement - Guaranteed Income for those with
Disabilities
Up until twenty years ago, anyone who won a lawsuit as a
result of a claim involving worker's compensation, wrongful death
or accident had to accept a lump sum payment as their
compensation. The payment would be intended to be invested, with
the beneficiary living off of the proceeds for as long as their
recovery was expected to take. In many cases, this type of
settlement works fine, but in other cases, the results are a
disaster.
It is difficult enough for someone who has been through the
trauma of an accident or illness to have to adjust to a new
lifestyle without having to also become an expert in the art of
financial investing. If you have been active all of your life and
you suddenly find yourself in a wheelchair and having to handle
assets of several hundred thousand dollars or more, you could be
overwhelmed. You could hire someone to handle the investments for
you as well as the tax issues, but what if the person you hired
wasn't trustworthy? What if you hired a greedy relative who took
all of the money? What if you hired someone incompetent?
These problems, and statistics that show that people who receive
large sums as compensation for accident, injury, or wrongful
death often spend all of their money in a short period of time,
led to Congressional action in 1982 that amended the Federal tax
code to allow for structured settlements. A structured settlement
is simply an agreement between the responsible party and the
injured party that the payments will be made over time, rather
than in a lump sum. The two parties reach an agreement, the party
responsible for payment purchases an annuity, usually through an
insurance company, and the injured party will receive steady
income over a period of years or even a lifetime.
The payments are adjusted for inflation; the sum of all of the
payments will be greater than if the amount had been paid as a
lump sum. Because the payments are purchased up front as an
annuity, the paying party actually pays less than the sum of the
payments, as well. The result is generally a win-win situation,
with the injured party receiving a steady stream of income over
as long a period of time as necessary, while the paying party
does not have to worry about making monthly or annual
payments.
While a structured settlement is not the ideal payment
arrangement in all situations where a long term injury settlement
occurs, it does work well in many cases where a lump sum payout
might be undesirable.
©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is
the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational
Websites, including http://www.StructuredSettlementHelp.com/
and http://www.HomeEquityHelp.net/
MORE RESOURCES:
Father paved way for Street's debutDenver Post, CO - Nov 17, 2008... and Nixon Coming" — on Monday, at the Austin, Texas, offices of The James Street Group, a financial firm that specializes in structured settlements. ... |
Structured-Settlements - Google News
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Structured Settlements
Are Like Ants
Ants are powerful creatures. The powerful ant legs are able
to lift 20 times their body weight, and run the equivalent
of a man running as fast as a racehorse.
A Revolutionary
Fundraising Opportunity -- Life Settlements
Amid fundraisers' growing concerns about the current
charitable giving climate, dampened by the erratic stock
market and shaky economy, a new fundraising opportunity has
emerged - Life Settlements.What is a Life Settlement? A
Life Settlement is the sale of an existing life insurance
policy for a lump sum of cash that is more than the cash
surrender value.
Options for Lawsuit
Settlement Winners Receiving Periodic Payments
On January 22,2002, President George W. Bush signed into
law a bill that protects individuals who must sell their
structured settlement payments to meet unplanned financial
needs.
What is Structured
Settlement?
Because it is tailor-made for individual cases, the
structure may also include some immediate payment to cover
special damages. The payment is usually made through
purchase of an annuity from a Life Insurance Company.
Should You Sell Your
Structured Settlement?
The courts have just awarded you a settlement in the amount
of $1.3 million dollars for injuries you sustained while
using the Widget Corporation's product.
Offshore Asset
Protection Trusts for US Citizens
When it comes to discussing offshore anything and US
citizens - from offshore trusts to investments, from
offshore banking to company incorporation - it's important
to note the following facts: -- US citizens are taxed on
their worldwide income. This includes income from interest,
dividends and gains whether onshore or offshore.
Consider a Structured
Settlement?
Structured settlements have been around for a long time
however their popularity has steadily increased over the
past 6 years. In 1999 only 7% of insurance settlements that
were under $7,000 were completed as structured settlements.
Lucky
Have you ever looked around and wondered how everyone is
buying houses? Are they really doing that much better than
you are? Maybe. Maybe not.
A Structured Lawsuit
Settlement Seemed Like a Good Idea at One Time
You are receiving payments spread out over months, years,
even a lifetime. It's great when the money arrives
but the payments are often too small or too spread out to
really satisfy your needs.
Structured Settlements
Offer Advantages over Lump-Sum Payments
A structured settlement, which offers injury victims cash
payments through a long-term annuity as compensation for
their damages and medical expenses, offer a number of
possible advantages over payment in a lump sum. While the
lump sum payment is the traditional way for responsible
parties to pay accident claims, the structured settlement
offers payments over the span of an agreed-upon period of
time.
When Should You Not Cash
Out Your Annuity?
You should not cash out your annuity when it's not in your
best interest. Here are 3 reasons it might not be in your
best interest; it's too soon, you don't have a good enough
reason, it will cost you too much.
Structured Settlement -
Guaranteed Income for those with Disabilities
Up until twenty years ago, anyone who won a lawsuit as a
result of a claim involving worker's compensation, wrongful
death or accident had to accept a lump sum payment as their
compensation. The payment would be intended to be invested,
with the beneficiary living off of the proceeds for as long
as their recovery was expected to take.
Making Backwards
Choices
I was reading this past week about a woman who lost 170 lbs
in 9 months by eating backwards. She had breakfast for
dinner and dinner for breakfast.
Individual Voluntary
Arrangements. IVA
What is an IVA?There is an alternative to bankruptcy called
an "Individual Voluntary Arrangement" (IVA). This is a
formal arrangement through the county court to pay an
agreed amount off your debts over a shorter period.
Surviving High Debt
States
Are you more likely to have more debt according to what
state you live in? In a recent report done by Experian on
the debt averages per state, the answer is yes! The report,
compiled from approximately 3 million consumers nationwide,
shows that the North East states of New Hampshire,
Connecticut and Rhode Island have the highest average
overall debt in the nation of $16,845, $15,314 and $14,643.
The report measures overall debt of a consumer; everything
present on a credit report, including credit cards and
installment debts but excluding mortgage debt.
The Cash Now
Question
If you have ever been in a bind for cash you know the
stress, the weight of not being able to pay your bills. In
these desperate times, desperate measures are often taken.
Structured Settlements -
Should You Sell Yours?
In recent years, it has become more common for victims of
accidental injury who accept a settlement from the at-fault
party to accept a structured settlement instead of a
lump-sum payment. With a structured settlement, the injured
party receives payments over an agreed-upon length of time
- five years, ten years, or even a lifetime, rather than
receiving payment up front in a lump sum.
What is a Trust and what
are the Benefits?
Trusts are becoming a popular way to structure business and
personal affairs. If you are considering using a trust in
any way, you should be clear on the legal obligations and
the relationships involved.
Structured Settlement
Factoring
Have you received a structured settlement recently? A
structured settlement can be a good thing if you have been
a victim of malfeasance, have been severely injured or can
no longer physically work. Structured settlements will help
you pay bills.
Unstructured
Settlement
Me'Lisa Delaney, 43, is brain-injured as a result of a 1984
medical error that caused a stroke during surgery. The
hospital agreed to settle via a structured settlement, as
overseen by a county conservatorship.
|
|
