• October 6, 2018
• LPL Financial
• Misrepresentation
• VUL

The Wolper Law Firm, P.A. is currently investigating claims against Steven Crawford, a former Financial Advisor at LPL Financial, now currently with Kestra Financial, in Glen Allen, Virgina. Steven Crawford has been in the securities industry since the 1980s and previously worked at Jefferson Pilot Securities.

According to publicly available records released by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), in April 2018, a customer filed a complaint against Steven Crawford, alleging:

“Plaintiff alleged the RR misrepresented a VUL contract purchased in 2001, indicating that premiums would not substantially or materially change over the life of the policy. In 2016 the premiums increased and the policy subsequently lapsed.” The alleged damages are more than $600,000 and the matter remains pending.
Variable universal policies are complex hybrid investment and insurance products. Many investors do not realize that the premium funding may be changed at the election of the issuer and/or the instrument itself may require higher premium contributions over the life of the policy. If those premium demands are not met, the policy will lapse. These policies are attractive to brokers because they do not require active management and generally pay the broker a high commission. If the product is not properly explained to the client, it can have disastrous results.

In addition, Steven Crawford has been the subject of three additional customer complaints over the course of his career, dealing with similar investment and insurance products.

For a full copy of Steven Crawford’s FINRA disclosure report, click https://brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/1147573#disclosuresSection

Financial advisors have a legal and regulatory obligation to recommend only suitable investments that are appropriate for their clients’ needs and objectives. Their employing brokerage firm has a legal and regulatory obligation to supervise the Financial Advisors’ sales practices and dealings with clients. To the extent any of these duties are breached, the customer may be entitled to a recovery of his or her investment losses.

If you or someone you know was a customer of Steven Crawford and you experienced investment losses, please contact the Wolper Law Firm, P.A. at 800.931.8452 or by email at mwolper@wolperlawfirm.com to discuss your specific situation and the legal options available. The Wolper Law Firm, P.A. represents investors nationwide in securities litigation and arbitration.

Matt Wolper, the Managing Principal of the Wolper Law Firm, P.A., is a trial lawyer who has handled hundreds of securities cases during his career involving a wide range of products, strategies and securities. Prior to representing investors, he was a partner with a national law firm, where he represented some of the largest banks and brokerage firms in the world in securities matters.