Regulators have nightmares about ad...

Regulators have nightmares about advertisements with messages like this: "Sell Annuities to Seniors Who Don't Have Money! greatest in number Have Equity in Their Homes--Help Your Agents Tap Into It!"

Silver-tongued salespeople luring senior citizens into mortgaging their firesides to buy variable annuities that they can't afford and don't full understand are the reason regulators want to toughen sales standards for variable annuities, a hybrid result that's basically mutual funds wrapped in an insurance policy.

Both variable annuities and variable life insurance are sold as securities, and must be sold by way of financial representatives registered with the