Quest CE

This year at Quest CE we have a great deal to be thankful for. Within the past few months we have celebrated our 5th Anniversary as Quest Continuing Education Solutions; awarded one of the ”Top Milwaukee Workplaces” by the Milwaukee Business Journal; and honored on Inc. Magazine’s 500|5000 List of the Fastest Growing Private Companies in America.

However, we would not have been able to accomplish this without our clients. It has been a pleasure to work with you and we truly value your business. At Quest CE, we strive to satisfy our clients by providing a level of customer service unparalleled in this industry.

We would like to show our appreciation by extending to you a 10%* discount on our suite of products listed below:

• Instructor Filings
• New Course Filings
• Custom Course Authoring
• Voucher Card Orders
• Custom Portal Development
• Quest Proprietary Course Licensing
• Firm Element Training
• ACM - Annual Compliance Meeting
• ACQ - Annual Compliance Questionnaire
• NA - Needs Analysis Survey
• OBA’s - Outside Business Activities
• G&E’s - Gifts and Entertainment
• AML – Anti-Money Laundering Training
• State Insurance Training

As an additional thank you to our retail customers, we are proud to offer a 10%* discount on our CE courses at learn.questce.com during the month of September. Simply use the discount code “THANKYOU” during checkout to receive the discount.

For more information on this limited special promotion, please contact Quest CE at 877-593-3366 or e-mail us at info@questce.com.

We are happy to have served you in the past, and we look forward to continuing to meet your Continuing Education needs in the future.

* Discount not applicable to State Fees

Producers are required to have adequate product specific training, including compliance with the insurer’s standards for product training, prior to soliciting an annuity product. In addition, a one-time minimum four (4) credit hour general annuity training course is required.

NAIC adopted this Model Regulation to set standards and procedures for suitable annuity recommendations. In addition, it is to require insurers to establish a system to supervise recommendations so that the insurance needs and financial objectives of consumers are appropriately addressed.

Insurers will be held responsible for ensuring that annuity transactions are suitable. Prior to recommending a particular annuity to a consumer, an insurer or producer must make reasonable efforts to obtain the consumer’s suitability information. Producers will be required to be trained on the provisions of annuities in general, and the specific products they are selling. Where need be, the suitability standards will be consistent with suitability standards imposed by the Financial Industry Regulation Authority (FINRA).

If a producer receives substantially similar training in another jurisdiction, it would satisfy an insurance department’s training requirements. Prior to allowing a producer to sell its annuity products, insurers shall verify the producer has completed the mandated training.

If you have any questions about the new training requirement call Quest CE at 877.593.3366 and ask to speak with one of our qualified compliance specialists or e-mail us at info@questce.com.

Quest CE is proud to announce our Iowa 4-Hour Annuity Training Course has been approved by the state and meets the Iowa Administrative Rule 191-15.72 for a one-time, four (4) hour annuity training course. In addition, this course is approved for resident CE credit.

Effective January 1, 2011, Iowa Administrative Rule 191-15.72 requires all Insurance Producers selling or soliciting Annuity Products in the State of Iowa to obtain four (4) continuing education credits by an APPROVED vendor offering an Annuity Products Course. This is a one-time requirement and is not a condition of license renewal.

This is a separate requirement from the already existing rule 15.80 for Indexed Insurance Products.

To purchase the course or view our Iowa Online Course Library please Click Here.

Effective August 9, 2010, The Department of Securities and Banking in the District of Columbia requires that any applicant who passes the examination to become a resident insurance producer must submit to fingerprinting and a background check through the DC Metropolitan Police Department, prior to being granted a license.

Every non-resident producer who becomes a resident producer on or after August 9, 2010, must also submit to a fingerprinting and background check.

To view our library of Washington DC Insurance CE courses please Click Here.

A part of every broker dealers firm element program consists of surveys. Whether they be Annual Compliance Questionnaires (ACQ), Outside Business Activities (OBA), Gifts and Entertainment, or Needs Analysis Surveys. As your company’s Compliance Officer you are in charge of compiling and organizing a large amount of information for your reps. This would be a daunting task even if all your reps had comparable information that would be easier to manage. More often than not, your reps have individual circumstances that they are required to report, meaning you are responsible for tracking these circumstances. This can make your job both stressful and frustrating.

Fortunately, Quest is able to offer an affordable online solution to implementing your surveys, collecting the data, and reporting on this data instantly. Our online survey solution is web-based meaning your data is infinitely accessible because you never know when FINRA may audit your firm. If FINRA does audit your firm, you will be able to pull easy to use excel spreadsheets, instantly reporting on your reps activities and maintaining your compliance.

Surveys through Quest insure total control over your program with minimal effort on your part.

Your reps fill out the surveys you create directly in our Learning Management System (LMS). Any change made to pre-existing conditions sends off an automatic e-mail directly to you to allow or deny activity, thus creating an automatic audit trail.

Easy audits + easy queries + more compliant + fully integrated in our LMS = your ideal survey solution.

For more information on our Survey Solution contact our Sales Team at 877.593.3366 or e-mail sales@questce.com

On July 12, 2010, a US Court of Appeals threw out the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Rule 151A effecting indexed annuities. Specifically, this left indexed annuities under state regulation as an insurance product rather than previously under the SEC’s oversight as a security. The decision coincides with a financial reform bill that Congress was considering which includes an amendment that would also keep indexed annuities under the purview of states.

For more information on this change or for updates visit the SEC’s website www.sec.gov

FINRA continues to have concerns about the sale of new products and alternative investments in particular. It is important to note that firms must fundamentally understand a products natures and risks before creating or selling it.

A common problem advisors run into when recommending alternative investments is not fully understanding the risks and potential consequences of the products because they are new and/or complex.

Quest CE offers a course which provides an introduction to alternative investments and the importance of understanding the risks associated with them before selling them.

Course Summary:

Portfolio diversification can be achieved through alternative investments. Investments made into assets that do not fall under one of the three traditional asset types (cash, stocks and bonds), are called alternative investments.

This course will cover the most often utilized alternative investment options:

• Futures
• Options
• ETFs
• Hedged Funds
• REITS
• Gold

For more information on this course or to speak to a representative from Quest call 877.593.3366 or e-mail sales@questce.com.

On July 27, 2010, The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a request for public comment to conduct its study of the obligations and standards of care of broker-dealers and investment advisers providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail investors.

The study is required under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, which President Obama signed into law on July 21, 2010. As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC is requesting public input, comments, and data on issues related to the effectiveness of existing standards of care for brokers-dealers and investment advisers, and whether there are gaps, shortcomings, or overlaps in the current legal or regulatory standards.

The public comment period will remain open for 30 days, following publication of the comment request in the Federal Register.

Historically, the SEC has acted as the “watch dog” to investment advisors whereas broker dealers are held accountable by FINRA, the Self Regulatory Organization (SRO) that performs market regulation under contract with brokerage firms and trading markets. Several SEC Commissioners have made comments in the past that favor an SRO model and FINRA continues to assert that it can take on the job of adviser oversight.

The results of the study could significantly impact adviser oversight in the future and potentially lead to a module similar to that of FINRA or FINRA could become an overseer to the Investment Advisor industry, in addition to their role as SRO to broker dealers.

For more information on this topic visit the SEC’s website www.sec.gov

The State of South Carolina no longer requires a South Carolina State-Approved monitor for online (self-study) courses. A Disinterested Third Party may monitor exams, which can include someone who is NOT:
(A) a minor
(B) a relative of the producer
(C) an immediate supervisor/manager of the producer
(D) a person with an economic or other interest in assuring the successful outcome of the examination

Employment by the same company or working for the same employer does not mean a person has ‘an economic or other direct interest in assuring the successful outcome of the examination.’ For example, a co-worker of the producer taking the competency exam may administer the examination as long the other requirements are met and the co-worker does not regularly work with the producer in a marketing or sales capacity.

To view our South Carolina online course library click HERE.

Nevada continues to expand its online license application offerings.

Applicants may now apply online quickly and easily for the following Individual License Types:
• Resident Producer
• Non-resident Producer with expanded available lines of authority
• Non-resident Surplus Lines Broker
• Non-resident Independent Adjuster
• Non-resident Associate Adjuster

In addition to the Individual License types, the following Firm License types are also available online:
• Resident Producer Firm
• Non-resident Producer Firm with expanded available lines of authority
• Non-resident Surplus Lines Broker
• Non-resident Independent Adjuster

To view our Nevada online course library click HERE.