'Tricks of the trade' to air Sunday, April 13

NEW YORK - April 8, 2008 - With an estimated 15 trillion dollars under their control American seniors have become more of a sales target than ever for insurance agents seeking to sell them annuities. On Sunday, April 13 (7:00 PM/ET), "Dateline" goes undercover in "Tricks of the Trade" -- a hidden camera investigation revealing what some insurance agents say, and what they don't say, when they think they are alone with a senior. In his signature style, Chris Hansen then confronts agents about their questionable sales pitches.

NBC News footage shows the widespread practice of agents cloaking themselves in fancy titles and insurance agents attending a seminar to learn these sales tactics. Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, who reviewed "Dateline's" footage, and who has filed several suits alleging fraud in the sale of annuities to seniors, tells Hansen: "...what is tragic about it is when those agents go into the seniors' homes, it is literally the wolf among the lambs."      

David Corvo is the executive producer of "Dateline NBC."

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