Twisting

Definition of "Twisting"

Written by

Lois Briesemeister

US Southwest Real Estate & Leasing

Most generally, twisting in insurance is regarded as an unfair trade policy or practice. Twisting means a life insurance policy holder’s misrepresentation on behalf of an insurance broker or agent. Through manipulative persuasion, the latter intends to convince their client to cancel and buy a new insurance policy at their company. On the other hand, churning in finance implies that the switch to a new policy occurs at the same company. Yet, it still doesn’t serve the client’s interests.

The definition of twisting in layman’s terms

Think of twisting as a “bait and switch” tactic. As the word indicates, we deal with a distorted aspect of reality or a dishonest strategy to achieve one’s objectives. An agent strives to sway you to move your insurance over to them by nullifying your existing policy and transferring the new one to their agency. However, they will resort to misinformation, fraud, and lies. In fact, the recent insurance coverage barely differs from the former. 

These crooked agents’ attitude is questionable and highly unethical. To combat misinformation, institutions adapted the following preventive measures. Once a customer intends to change their life insurance, it’s standard procedure to fill out a form stating and acknowledging the pros and cons of why they chose that particular new policy.

Measures against twisting

First and foremost, twisting is illegal. For this reason, most US states adapted laws outlining full disclosure of applicable comparative information on existing insurance policies. These laws may notify the insurance company that issued the existing policy to allow it to respond to the agent’s proposal. The Insurance Fraud Prevention Act offers protection for clients against financial wrongdoings. In addition, they require agents to provide transparency when trying to persuade their customers to switch policies.

Conclusion

The insurance industry can have certain pitfalls in store, just like the miscellaneous labyrinth of real estate finance. Don’t fall victim to twisting! Before leaving your present insurance company in favor of a brand new policy at another firm, learn about its advantages, benefits, and disadvantages!