Should we be able to sue celebrities who give us bad advice?

Before I retired, reverse mortgages were the going thing. I worked for a stock broker who always advised his clients to never sign up for the reverse mortgages. Fast forward to today, Tom Selleck is fiercely pushing reverse mortgages & even looks directly into the camera to say “Some people think that this is just the bank’s way to take your house, but my research shows that just is not true” as he proceeds to tell you how much easier your life will be if you take the reverse mortgage.

USA TODAY recently reported on all the people who took out a reverse mortgage about 10 years ago & today these homes are going into foreclosure with the elderly owners having no place to go.

My brother tried to talk me into taking out a reverse mortgage back when I was remodeling my house. I couldn’t remember why my boss had been so against the idea but it always caused me to hesitate on jumping into a reverse mortgage. Then Tom started assuring me that I’d be safe if I did take out a reverse mortgage & I started considering the idea once again. I did some research on my own & saw a clause stating that I wouldn’t have to pay back the loan as long as I lived in the house. I tend to overthink things & it made me wonder what would happen IF I had to go into a nursing home & could no longer live in my home. I didn’t call to ask the question because I didn’t trust the people providing the answers. I decided to wait a little longer.

When I saw the USA TODAY article, I remembered sexy Tommy assuring me that I wouldn’t lose my home & then I started wondering how many people would have chosen another option but chose to go with the reverse mortgage because they felt they could trust him. I’ve been smart enough to know that when a company pays a celebrity to endorse their product, there’s a good chance I’m being scammed. At the same time, I feel that many celebrities have just wanted a pay check & would say anything without regard to those that were listening to them.

Personally, I’ve always felt that celebrities who hawk any product that ends up being a scam should be held liable for their cooperation in the scam. It seems that they are automatically given a pass when they claim ignorance. Should they be held responsible for failing to do their homework before accepting a paycheck & providing false advertisement?