The Buckingham Group Reviews (%countItem)
The Buckingham Group Rating
Address: 22 S Bellflower Rd, Bothell, Washington, United States, 98012-9163
Phone: |
Show more...
|
Web: |
|
Add contact information for The Buckingham Group
Add new contacts
This company contacted me via an email that strongly implied that it was from my retirement plan. I do not know how else they knew my work email, my employer and my retirement plan. Although at the bottom of email there was text stating "All licensed representatives are not employees of the college or PERS/TRS," I still inferred that the person I was meeting with was a contractor for either my employer or the plan. Because I believed I was meeting with a representative of my retirement plan, I revealed personal information about my financial position and investments, before I realized that this person was a sales person trying to sell me an investment vehicle unrelated to my retirement plan.
The text of the email appears below, with personal information redacted:
"Employee XXX,
Each year, as an employee of XXX you are eligible to receive a free one-on-one consultation for answers to your specific state, federal and individual retirement benefit questions.
At your consultation, you will be provided with information that will tell you what your expected income will be from PERS/TRS when you retire, and how much longer you will have to work. That, along with advice on the best ways to utilize your 401(a) options with your PERS/TRS and/or Social Security benefits.
Appointments fill up quickly. If you’d like to secure your spot, click on the link below, or simply reply “yes” to this email."
First of all I did not send the email. The email was sent from an national organization called PERA (Professional Educators Retirement Association) Ironically they are the same organization that sets the appointments for the districts "Approved Vendors" who only offer Qualified (tax deferred) products that are taxable upon withdrawal or at retirement. The information they obtain to send the emails is either provided or purchased from the districts. I purchase the leads from PERA who send the emails, clearly stating I am not an approved vendor. I am a licensed agent that provides non-qualified plans for tax free income upon withdrawal or retirement. The reason the district does not consider me an approved vendor is because I do not work for the brokerage firm they have hired to provide the 403b and 457 plans. Even though we both use the same vendor for leads and the same company for the various products.
I have since ceased purchasing these leads from PARA and I am no longer affiliated with that organization.
Since Ms ***'s complaint was over the email and not me personally, I do not feel my company which has been doing business on the west coast since 2006 without blemish, should be the focus of her complaint. perhaps she should respond to the sender of the email.
Respectfully submitted,
The Buckingham Group,
H W Buckingham
Pres/COO