NEB President Jeffrey S. Kopitz Discloses the Benefits of Full Disclosure. |
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SAN DIEGO, CA, January 28, 2008—NEB President Jeffrey S. Kopitz recently disclosed to readers of Life Insurance Selling that full disclosure is a key strategy for building optimal client trust.
Writing in the magazine’s January 08 issue, Kopitz said that non-disclosure is just as serious a matter as misrepresentation. “If you routinely fail to provide key information to your prospects, and you do this for your own benefit, then you are in the same position as a lobster placed in a pot of lukewarm water: totally unaware of the hot water that will soon engulf you.”
In the article, Kopitz defined disclosure from an ethical perspective. “The sharing of information should be robust,” Kopitz said, “and the goal of sharing should be to help the person weigh the pluses and minuses of the recommendation and to make an informed decision.”
He also discussed how much financial professionals are legally obligated to disclose. “Assuming you comply with the minimum disclosures required by your license type,” he asked, “how much further should you go? I believe you should disclose as much as possible, especially if non-disclosure would lead a client to think you held information back for financial gain.”
Kopitz also addressed what exactly financial professionals should disclosure, how to document client disclosures, and what financial professionals stand to lose and gain from full disclosure.
Kopitz ended his article with a clarion call for full disclosure. “Perhaps the strongest case for full disclosure is the positive affect it has on one’s stress level,” he said. “ When your default position is more disclosure, not less, then ethical quandaries and self-disputes vanish and you just do what comes naturally. Plus, when your philosophy is to share fully with clients, you will experience the serenity that comes from educating the client and letting the chips fall where they may. Whether you make more or less money as a result, you still win!”
About National Ethics Bureau:
The National Ethics Bureau™ (NEB) is a membership organization of financial professionals who have successfully passed a comprehensive series of background checks and have agreed to maintain NEB membership standards. All members are admitted into NEB’s online national registry, where consumers can view a member’s approval status and professional profile.
NEB also advocates for business ethics and consumer protection through its trade-magazine columns, conference presentations, consumer guides, monthly Ethics Edge newsletter, and web site (www.ethicscheck.com).
NEB is not a professional designation, nor does it sell or endorse any financial products.
For more information, visit www.ethicscheck.com.
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