Treating Death as a Commodity

[Sassy]

Just read this - never heard of doing this before - maybe I could get someone to purchase a big life insurance policy on me & give me $200,000 up front...   
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lifesettlement20feb20,0,5569637.story

[MountainDon]

I have heard of this before. There does seem to be something wrong, shady, whatever about people investing in your future death though. 

[peternap]

It is shady Don, and in Virginia, illegal! There has to be a true insurable interest here. It's really sad to see how people treat others.

[ScottA]

What about the bloodsuckers isn't shaddy? This whole deal smells.

[n74tg]

What's got everybody so upset here?  I suspect it is someone else besides the family beneficiaries profiting on the death. 

If the older person doesn't like the idea, all they have to do is say no.  If the family heirs don't like the idea, all they have to do is convince grandma to say no.  But since the older person is going to get money up front while they are still alive; they are getting to spend some of their own insurance money.  Who would fuss about that. 

Are you just upset about the way the relative portions are being divided.  I give you $200,000 now and enough money to pay the premiums until you die and in return I get $2 million.  Could you stomach better if I didn't give you the upfront money, but agreed to split the 2 million (50-50) with your family heirs.  I doubt the heirs would object; after all, they obviously couldn't afford to buy grandma a 2 million life insurance policy, or for that matter a $1 million policy (the amount they would get in the settlement). 

From the insurance company point of view, if they don't like the idea, all they have to do is stop selling these policies.  But, something tells me that's something they won't do.  More likely, they will just raise the premiums to make more profit.

Edited:  I just discussed this with the girlfriend, who doesn't disagree with the concept.  However, she did mention that it behooves the investor for the insured to die earlier, rather than later.  So, depending on the moral's of the beneficiary, they might want to be in a position to speed up the death of the insured by "accident".  Good point. 

So, I'm going to be a little of a hypocrite here.  I wouldn't necessarily mind being the investor here, but I don't think I would want to be the insured.

[glenn kangiser]

Profiting off of death seems unethical, but then isn't that what the health care and pharmaceutical industry is about?  ...and lawyers just love it.