👋 Good Morning. Hope your 2026 is off to a good start! Welcome to the 3nd edition of our Weekly Recap. The news, trends, and training Producers need (with less of the boring).

😐 Vibe Check: Four people just sued McDonald's for lying about ribs for 44 years, class actions hit $80B (that's billion with a B), and apparently 35% of lonely workers are calling in sick monthly. Our society is perfectly fine though. Totally fine.

☕ Grab your coffee, stop doom-scrolling the performative outrage on your social media feed, and let’s get started.

STORY OF THE WEEK

Chowhounds Shocked To Find McRibs Aren’t Made of Ribs

Four brave souls have filed a class-action lawsuit against McDonald's, claiming the fast-food giant pulled off one of the most audacious marketing sleights of hand in history: convincing millions of Americans that a sandwich called the "McRib" contains actual rib meat.

Spoiler alert: It doesn't.

The lawsuit alleges the McRib's meat patty is reconstructed from ground pork shoulder, heart, tripe, and scalded stomach — which, if you're keeping score at home, are decidedly NOT ribs. The plaintiffs argue this is "a deliberate sleight of hand" designed to make customers think they're getting premium rib meat when they're actually getting... well, everything but.

McDonald's response? Essentially: "No sh*t."

The company points out their website has always described it as "seasoned boneless pork dipped in a tangy BBQ sauce" — never once promising actual ribs. The boneless part is doing a LOT of heavy lifting in that description.

But here's where it gets spicy:

The lawsuit claims McDonald's weaponized scarcity marketing to prevent customers from scrutinizing the ingredients too closely. By only offering the McRib periodically since 1981, the company created a sense of urgency that discourages deep consumer scrutiny.

The strategy worked brilliantly — McDonald's sold over 30 million McRibs in a single year, turning a sandwich that originally flopped in Kansas City into a cultural phenomenon with its own Reddit threads, Twitter accounts, and dedicated McRib Locator websites.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages, restitution, and an end to what plaintiffs call deceptive marketing practices. McDonald's maintains the lawsuit "distorts the facts" and insists they've "always been transparent about our ingredients".

It’s textbook product liability exposure for restaurants and food manufacturers.

When your insured’s product name creates specific expectations that don't match reality — even with disclosures — you're in litigation territory.

NEWS OF THE WEEK

• 💸 Class Action Settlements Hit $80B in 2025: Holy settlement Batman. The top 10 class-action settlements in 2025 clocked in at nearly $80 billion — more than the GDP of 90+ countries and most U.S. state budgets. This marks the fourth straight year settlements topped $40 billion. The 2022-2025 damage? A cool $238 billion. The plaintiff's bar is printing money. They're filing 36 new federal class actions every day (13,000+ in 2025), and judges are approving 68% of them. Hottest targets? Data breach claims (up 200% since 2022) and privacy lawsuits targeting website pixels, chatbots, and session replay tech. The plaintiff's bar found the cheat code — pairing modern tech with decades-old laws that allow statutory damages per violation. Using a website chatbot could cost your clients millions. Time to check that EPLI, D&O, cyber, and E&O coverage.

• ☢️ Voluntary Benefits Commissions Turn Radioactive: Four class-action lawsuits just dropped against United Airlines, LabCorp, Universal Services, and CHS alleging benefits consultants pocketed 22-40% commissions on voluntary benefits plans while employers stayed blind to the numbers. The firm behind it? Schlichter Bogard—the crew that's extracted $1.6 billion in 401(k) settlements—now importing their playbook into health benefits. Since employees pay 100% of voluntary benefit premiums (not employers), plaintiff attorneys just solved the legal "standing" problem that's killed similar cases. Legal experts predict courts will soon demand the same fiduciary scrutiny that exists in retirement plans: documented benchmarking, fee transparency, competitive bidding. If you're taking 25%+ on voluntary benefits without full disclosure to your clients, this wave is coming for you next.

• 🥴 Metlife’s Latest Study Dropped Some Wild Cognitive Dissonance: 54% of workers say they're "thriving" (up from 48%), yet nearly half are getting crushed by rising costs. Only 41% feel financially secure—down from 44%—while 47% say costs are outpacing income. Gen Z and Millennials lead this optimism parade with well-being scores jumping 8-10 points, but they're also most likely to say costs are destroying them financially. Nothing says "thriving" quite like being broke and happy about it. Your clients' employees feel great while their bank accounts bleed out—position supplemental benefits as the financial backstop keeping "thriving" from becoming "surviving."

• 💣 US Military Strikes in Venezuela Trigger Political Risk Alarm: Well, that escalated quickly. On January 3, US forces dropped bombs on Caracas and grabbed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who's now chilling in New York facing drug charges. Trump casually announced America would "run" Venezuela for a bit and that US oil companies would "claim and extract" the country's oil. Wall Street loved it. Underwriters are nervous. Political violence is trending up globally, and Uncle Sam just showed he's willing to send in the troops. Between AI-powered misinformation, aggressive US interventions, and regional spillover, "force majeure" clauses are about to get a workout.

NUMBER OF THE WEEK

35%

The percentage of “lonely” workers who miss at least one workday per month, per Cigna. Welcome to 2026, where people are so fragile they’re surrounded by coworkers and still feel like they're on a deserted island. Smh.

PRODUCER OF THE WEEK

Luke Berry

In this episode, we sit down with Luke Berry aka The Million Dollar Man. Luke shares how he wrote $1M in revenue in 2025 via live events, the strategies and frameworks he uses to differentiate himself in the market, and what he'd do if he had to rebuild from zero. Instant classic. Do yourself a favor and watch. Seriosuly.

TEAM PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Anita Goodman

See what I did there? LOL. Just kidding. No one was nominated this week. If you have a support team member you’d like to shoutout hit ‘reply’ and give us the who and why.

POD OF THE WEEK

Add This One Thing to Your Routine to Make 2026 Your Best Year (Plus Q&A)

In this episode, Micah breaks down why "meditation" (aka sitting quietly) makes you better at cold calls, how silence helps you stop emotionally vomiting on prospects, the exact ROI of slowing down to speed up your sales cycle, and why top producers seem weirdly calm when deals blow up

Plus: Q&A on writing books that land $30K deals, structuring follow-ups without overthinking it, and whether you should call outside your home state.

USEFUL LINKS

📈 Insurance Xdate: free trial here

📬 Max Revenue Letter: sign up here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

📒 Producer Playbook: learn more here

⁠⁠⁠⁠🕹️ Play Producer Games: check it out here

OPINION

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That’s this week in insurance.

Forward it to the new guy who always brings up the same prospect in the sales meeting.

See you next week.