Aviva USA

America's life insurance giant company... operating worldwide.
Apr 28th, 2017

My child was assigned an investment in this company because she sustained serious injuries when she was very young. I have provided address updates over the years. This summer we purchased a home so I called to offer an address update today. I provided her case number, social security number and so on as requested. The individual acting as the rep insisted on providing the address they have on file now. I ran through every single home address my child has ever lived at. The rep said none were correct. So I asked for another path and offered to provide a state id for her, school records and so on. It was refused. The rep confirmed that unless someone can correctly guess what they have typed into their system for an address they will not update it for her. My daughter will be 18 very soon. I gave up and called her attorney. It is the most ridiculous thing I have ever encountered.
Oct 9th, 2017

I only give Aviva 1 star because it is not possible to go lower.  Like other people who have reviewed them, I met with very friendly representatives that showed all the numbers of how much the market has gone up since the great depression, and was sold on the "guaranteed minimum" amount of the policy.  In other words, I was told that even if the market goes negative, I would make 4%.   The only catch was that if the market goes up 25%, my earnings would be capped at 11.5%.  Here are the "catches" that were either not disclosed to me, or were buried in so many forms that I did not find them until it was too late:1) The 4% was for a different plan, and what they actually sold me was a minimum 2%.2) The 2% was after they took 16% of the premiums paid for various expenses.  Therefore, I am actually "guaranteed" to loose between 3.5 and 14% of my investment.  The only way to break even is if the market averages at least 5% for the next 20 years.I wish I had read reviews before I jumped into this, or at least compared different products.  (Other guaranteed products are between 5-8% in expenses).  Aviva is not looking after you, and if the product is right for you, this company is not the best option.
Nov 19th, 2013

In 2002, at my workplace, a mortgage company, Martin Conway Smith, an independent insurance broker, spoke to me several times about life insurance and retirement plans. Finally, I agreed to meet with him, although at the time I was not considering any changes to either my life insurance or retirement plans. He came over to my house, acting like a good friend. He brought a bottle of wine and was very nice to my young children, Joshua and Hunter. Mr. Smith asked about my children's future, and this struck a chord with me. I told him that my father had died at age 44 and that my most important goal in life was to protect my young wife and children. Mr. Smith replied that he had the perfect plan for me, a 412i pension plan that was tied to a life insurance policy. He assured me that this 412i plan was a legitimate way to accomplish my goal and would also enable me to save money by taking sizeable tax deductions based on this policy. Mr. Smith recommended that I close out our modest 401k plans, as well as let our life insurance policies with Hancock and A.A.A lapse. The 412i plan was a much better investment and would provide more security for my young family, he said. And it was backed by a first-class organization, Indianapolis Life Insurance Company, he added. I had no reason to distrust him; he seemed like a person of good character who was looking out for me and my family.Well, appearances can be deceptive. The 412i plan turned out to be a complete disaster! In 2006, the I.R.S. informed me that it was illegal. The amount of life insurance in the policy, $3,500,00, was excessive. Also, the I.R.S. disallowed the tax deductions promised in the plan, one of Mr. Smith's big selling points. The I.R.S. came after me hard, putting two agents on my case. I had to hire my CPA and an actuary to represent me against the I.R.S. It has cost me approximately $133,000 to hire people and settle with the I.R.S. When I told Martin Smith what the I.R.S. said, he took no responsibility for any of it. He gave me the name of an attorney who was representing customers like me against Indianapolis Life. This felt odd, since Mr. Smith was taking no responsibility for having sold me an illegal policy.All this was extremely stressful for me. In April 2005, I had suffered a heart attack, followed by a triple bypass. In October 2005, my doctors implanted an ICD. Prior to that, in 2003, Martin Smith had sold me an additional 10-year policy for $350,000. Other life insurance agents I've spoken to recently have told me that selling a 36-year-old person a policy for only 10 years is unethical. They wondered if he was hoping to re-sell me another policy in 10 years and make an even larger commission. He had already made commissions of over $70,000 on my policies.As a result of Martin Smith's and the insurance company's unethical behavior, I lost my life insurance and retirement fund. I am no longer insurable because of my heart condition. After I discovered the 412i plan was illegal and realized that I did not have the liquid assets to settle with the I.R.S., I canceled my policy. Still, the insurance company hit me with a hefty $204,055.79 early termination fee, which they refuse to refund. I have written them several letters requesting a refund.In 2008, I was involved in a class action suit against Indianapolis Life. I was one of about a dozen plaintiffs. After several appeals, the case was eventually dismissed because the fine print of the contract said the plaintiffs should have gotten tax advice from a tax accountant before buying the policy. I had gotten tax advice from Martin Smith; at the time I thought he and Indianapolis Life had my best interests at heart. Since 1999, it has been well-publicized in insurance industry trade journals that the 412i plan is illegal, so there's no way Indianapolis Life can plead ignorance on this subject. Recently, I heard a case in small claims court and the judge said there is no such thing as an iron-clad contract. In other words, if one of the parties has acted in bad faith, the other party should have an escape clause.The unethical behavior of Indianapolis Life, now called Aviva Life and Annuity Company, has caused my family much emotional and physical stress in addition to our financial losses. So on top of this, to slap me with  an early termination fee of over $200,000 is completely outrageous. They have gotten away with selling me and many others illegal policies. The least the people running Aviva can do, to show that they have some semblance of a heart and conscience, is to refund my early termination fee. In these difficult economic times, when so many people are struggling to stay afloat, companies like Aviva which take advantage of innocent people should be held accountable.
Jun 22nd, 2012