Resources

http://www3.ambest.com/lh/default.asp
A.M. Best Company is a full-service worldwide insurance company rating organization with 110 years of history.  Its flagship publication, Best’s Insurance Reports, offers the largest coverage of insurers in the United States.  Registered members (free) can access Best ratings of insurance companies.

http://www.full-disclosure.com/main.html
Full Disclosure provides a comprehensive third party source of life insurance policy information with extensive product specifications, historical performance, and sample illustrated values.  It covers universal life, indexed universal life, variable universal life, whole life and all types of survivorship life products.  This is a great resource for comparative life insurance policy specifications and features.

http://www.imsaethics.org/default.aspx
Insurance Marketplace Standards Association (IMSA) was created by the insurance industry to promote high standards of ethical conduct in the way insurance companies conduct business with consumers.  Any consumer can get a list of IMSA approved insurance companies and a copy of IMSA’s Principles and Code of Ethical Market Conduct.

http://www.naic.org/
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is a voluntary organization of the chief insurance regulatory officials of the 50 states. Its primary function is to help those regulatory officials protect the interests of insurance consumers. This is an extremely user-friendly web site that provides links to each state insurance department, information on how to file a formal complaint, a very excellent and current list of consumer "alerts", and a set of very helpful consumer guides on various insurance products.

http://www.sec.gov/
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created in 1934 to restore investor confidence in our capital markets by providing investors and the markets with more reliable information and clear rules of honest dealing. Variable life insurance products are considered to be securities and must therefore register with the SEC. The web site provides access to the prospectuses of every variable life insurance and every variable annuity ever submitted to the SEC.

http://www.lifeinsuranceselling.com/Pages/default.aspx
Life Insurance Selling is a monthly periodical generally targeted for the producer who offers multiple product lines to clients while focusing on the life insurance product market.  Its primary focus is field-tested sales strategies used by industry producers who provide selling insight and best practices to readers.  The web site provides access to most of the articles published in the last 5 years.

http://www.naifa.org/
The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) comprises more than 700 state and local associations of life underwriters representing the interests of approximately 200,000 agents and their associates nationwide. The Association’s mission is to advocate for a positive legislative and regulatory environment, enhance business and professional skills, and promote the ethical conduct of its members.  Any consumer can view the NAIFA Code of Ethics and can access a list of NAIFA members in their local area.

http://www.finra.org/index.htm
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) was created in July 2007 through the consoli-dation of NASD and the member regulation, enforcement and arbitration functions of the New York Stock Exchange.  It is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services and administers the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and registered firms.  There are lots of resources for new and experienced investors.

http://www.lifeandhealthinsurancenews.com/Pages/default.aspx
National Underwriter Life & Health is a weekly periodical that identifies, analyzes, and comments on the latest trends and events taking place in the life & health insurance industry.  Originally founded in 1897 as the Ohio Underwriter, by 1917, the weekly magazine had grown to a national scope and its name, along with the company's, was changed to the National Underwriter. The web site provides access to all of the articles published during the last 18 months.

http://www.financialpro.org/welcome.cfm
Founded in 1928, the mission the Society of Financial Service Professionals (FSP) is to promote professionalism among its nearly 17,000 members through the highest quality continuing education and the maintenance of high ethical standards and conduct. Society members have earned recognized professional credentials in the financial services industry, or are working towards attaining a professional credential. The Society publishes the Journal of Financial Service Professionals which is one of the oldest and most prestigious journals in the financial planning field.

http://www.ali-aba.org/
Since 1947, ALI-ABA (American Law Institute & American Bar Association) has been the recognized leader in continuing professional education for attorneys in the United States. ALI-ABA offers a national curriculum of continuing legal education for lawyers at every stage of their careers. Consumers can view all of the course offerings and other educational resources available to attorneys.

http://www.dri.org/Home.aspx
Defense Research Institute (DRI) is the international organization of attorneys defending the interests of business and individuals in civil litigation. DRI provides numerous educational and informational resources to DRI members and offers many opportunities for liaison among defense trial lawyers, Corporate America, and state and local defense organizations.

http://www.naepc.org/
The National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (NAEPC) is a national organization of professional estate planners and affiliated Estate Planning Councils focused on establishing and monitoring the highest professional and educational standards. NAEPC fosters public awareness of the quality services rendered by professionals who meet these standards.  A visitor to this web site can find a local estate planning professional with one or more of the following designations – CPA, CLU, AEP, CFP, CTFA, ChFC, ELFS.