Voya and ReliaStar

Voya Financial is a New York based financial, investment, retirement, and insurance company which began as a U.S. subsidiary of the ING Group. In 2013, Voya Financial went public, became an independent company, and rebranded under its new name.

Today, Voya Financial has more than $500 billion in assets under the company’s management and it serves more than 13 million people throughout the United States. It does this by providing life insurance, annuities, and retirement plans, and college savings plans, among other financial products.  Voya provides plans under its own name, and has companies like ReliaStar Life Insurance which are members of the Voya family of companies and which offer insurance products as well.

While products offered by Voya Financial and ReliaStar are provided to millions of people, these insurers have also been accused in the past of wrongdoing and the insurers as well as the predecessor company ING have also been sued in class action litigation.

A California financial elder abuse attorney can provide comprehensive assistance to policyholders and investors who have concerns or who are thinking of joining or initiating class action litigation.

Products Offered by Voya and ReliaStar

Voya Financial offers multiple types of life insurance products including:

• Term Life Insurance
• Universal Life Insurance
• Indexed Universal Life Insurance
• Variable Universal Life Insurance
• Survivorship Life

Voya also offers different types of annuities including:

• Fixed Indexed Annuities
• Variable Annuities
• Income Annuities
• Annuity Living Benefits
• Fixed Annuities

ReliaStar, which is a part of the Voya Financial family, specializes in offering life insurance policies and has total assets and liabilities in the billions.  ReliaStar Life Insurance Company of New York (RLNY) was incorporated in 1917 originally, while ReliaStar Insurance Company actually first incorporated under the laws of Minnesota back in 1885.

Class Actions & Regulatory Action Against Voya and ReliaStar

Voya and ReliaStar have both been named as defendants in various types of class action litigation.

• In 2011, ReliaStar was sued for allegedly failing to inform policyholders that cash interest would continue being charged when loans were taken out of accounts, even after loans had been repaid.
• In 2014, ING, Voya’s original parent company, agreed to pay $14.9 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging the company had received what amounted to illegal kickbacks through the use of revenue-sharing pacts with mutual funds.  The suit began in 2011, when Voya was not yet an independent company.

Voya also faced strong pressure in 2015 from regulators who Investment News indicated were concerned that some of its products were not suitable for retirement savers, despite how the products were marketed and sold. In response to the pressure, Voya Financial Advisors restricted the sale of variable annuities for the second time in a two-month period.

Get Help From Marin County Financial Elder Abuse Attorneys With Evans Law Firm, Inc.

Those who buy life insurance products or who are investing for retirement will need to carefully consider their options and need to know their rights. If any company or broker provides false information or markets inappropriate products to seniors or retirees, a California financial elder abuse attorney should be consulted for help. Evans Law Firm, Inc. can be reached at (415) 441-8669 or online at info@evanslaw.com.