NASAA PODCAST SERIES: The Alert Investor Senior Alert: “Fight Fraud--Become a Free Lunch Monitor” If it’s true there’s power in numbers...then the promoters of phony free meal seminars better watch out…there’s a bevy of savvy seniors ready to fight investment fraud…and report back to their state securities regulator. More today in the Alert Investor…brought to you by NASAA…the voice of state and provincial securities regulators. Imagine you’re invited to a swanky restaurant where the mood, music and food are just right… the perfect setting. There’s just one catch to this seemingly flawless scene...it could be a set-up and it could cost you your hard earned retirement. In fact, four out of five investors age 60 and over received at least one invitation to a free investment seminar in the past three years—and three out of five received six or more. All too often these free meal seminars touted as educational sessions about investing strategies or managing money in retirement serve as the venues where con artists wine and dine seniors out of their nest egg…leaving them with a full stomach and an empty retirement. A recent year-long examination of free lunch seminars conducted by state securities regulators, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority found that while many free meal financial seminars were advertised as “educational,” or “workshops,” 100 percent of the “seminars” were instead sales presentations; 50 percent featured exaggerated or misleading advertising claims; and one-quarter involved possibly unsuitable recommendations to attendees. NASAA President Fred Joseph: Instead of unbiased financial education and a meal, many free-meal seminar attendees are being fed a hard sales pitch for investment products that are often unsuitable. The fact is seniors have accumulated these assets for years but one quick deal over a free meal could wipe out their savings—leaving them without the means to fund their retirement. Here’s the bottom line: Seniors simply don’t have the time to re-coup such hits to their retirement. A joint program between state securities regulators and AARP called the Free Lunch Seminar Monitor program is giving seniors the tools to fight back against unscrupulous promoters… Here’s how the program works: A senior can volunteer to attend the free meal seminar as an observer, monitor the proceedings with a checklist of questions, and then report any possibilities of investment fraud to state securities authorities in their community for investigation. AARP Director of Financial Security Outreach, Jean Setzfand: “A solid investment portfolio is the bedrock of a financially secure retirement. By empowering individuals with knowledge and information, we aim to create an educated and financially savvy investor who can spot a scam when they are being targeted. We also hope the Free Lunch Seminar Monitor program will deter scammers and give state securities regulators an opportunity to investigate them.” NASAA President Fred Joseph: State securities regulators appreciate the opportunity to work closely with AARP and its membership to put unscrupulous salespeople on notice that the victimization of senior investors will not be tolerated. So how can you get involved in the Free Lunch Monitor program? Mail in any Free Meal invitations you’ve received to AARP and examine the online resource: A Free Lunch Invitation: Does it Say What it Means? Review and download the checklist of questions to Ask a Financial Professional Volunteer to become a free lunch monitor in your community Join the Online community of the ‘No Free Lunch” group For more information about the Free Lunch Seminar Monitor program and to download any of these resources log on to A A R P dot ORG. Additional tips on becoming a more savvy investor… can be found at NASAA’s Senior Investor Resource Center at N A S A A dot O R G.NASAA…. Because every investor deserves protection. ####