BridgeForce Compliance | Compliance News (October 2017)
- Change to advisor privacy consent template
- Modification to 8(d) of BridgeForce broker agreement
- Industry launches Standardized Advisor Practice Review survey
- BC reminds licensees to keep client information confidential
- FSCO releases latest life agent compliance report
Change to advisor privacy consent template
Your privacy consent must contain language to cover information shared with MGAs and their third-party service providers. Consent language in carrier applications does not extend to MGAs. Wording you can use can be found on the BridgeForce template “Advisor Privacy Statement and Customer Consent” (French version). If you use a different privacy statement, please ensure wording similar to the BridgeForce template is included, to cover the consent requirement for the MGA and their service providers. Refer to page 4 of the BridgeForce Code of Conduct to understand our expectations and privacy obligations.
Modification to 8(d) of BridgeForce broker agreement
We’ve made a minor modification to the BridgeForce broker agreement which does not require signing a new agreement. The change can be found under ‘Broker records’ 8(d):
Current: “After the termination of this Agreement, in the case of a dispute with a client, the Company will have access to the Broker’s offices, files and records for any and all business conducted through the Company.”
Updated: “After the termination of this Agreement, in the case of a dispute with a client, the Company will have access to the Broker’s offices, files and records for any and all business conducted through the Company to the extent Broker can do so without violating a contractual agreement or contravening a court order or applicable law.
Industry launches Standardized Advisor Practice Review survey
In August, the CLHIA published “Standardized Advisor Practice Review for Use in the MGA Channel”. Insurers will use the survey to gauge the state of compliance of your practice. Advisors selected by insurers for review will be expected to complete the survey and provide their compliance documents and templates as attachments to the survey.
Templates and tools to meet your compliance obligations are available on the Compliance page of the BridgeForce website, see Frequently Asked Questions.
BC reminds licensees to keep client information confidential
In June, the Insurance Council of BC (ICBC) issued Notice ICN 17-004 “Reminder of Licensee Responsibilities Related to Disclosure or Transfer of Client Information”.
The Notice identifies the steps that MGAs and agents should take to ensure client consent and confidentiality in situations that involve:
- an agent working with other agents to ensure coverage;
- reassignment of orphan clients by MGAs;
- selling or acquiring a book of business
- receiving client information from another licensee; and
- safeguarding client information
The Notice also identifies the potential regulatory consequences for non-compliance, including possible license suspension and monetary penalties of up to $20,000.
BC is the first province to issue specific rules around these issues. In the absence of other such rules from provinces, it’s recommended that these best practices be followed.
FSCO releases latest life agent compliance report
In August, FSCO released “Life Insurance Agents Compliance Report: 2016/17 Examination Results”. Unfortunately, levels of compliance in the 2016 examinations did not improve when compared to the previous examination cycle. In 2016, FSCO examined 214 advisors and issued Administrative Monetary Penalties to 69 advisors.
FSCO intends to expand its reviews and will use a risk-based approach that selects advisors based on late timing of licensing renewals, complaints received, sanctions received by other regulators, dual-licensed advisors, those with prior non-compliance records. The regulator will be expanding its approach to include desk audits for advisors considered medium risk, which will help FSCO to determine which advisors will subsequently require onsite or other reviews.