On April 12, 2018, Quebec’s insurance regulator, the Autorite des marches financiers (the “AMF”) announced that it had entered into agreements with three separate Canadian-licensed insurers, and had imposed administrative penalties which in the aggregate equal $2,100,000, related to unauthorized sales practices used to offer insurance products to the credit card customers of at least two separate retailers.
Each of the three insurers, The Canada Life Assurance Company, Chubb Life Insurance Company of Canada and The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, reportedly acknowledged that they did not follow sound business practices in relation to the distribution of the products, and had failed to comply with certain provisions of Quebec’s insurance legislation.
In each case it was reported that the insurers offered the products through employees of telemarketing firms, who were persons not certified by the AMF for this purpose, and that certified persons who were involved did not fulfill their required roles in relation to the distribution of the products in question.
Each of the insurers confirmed that the unauthorized sales practices were no longer being used, and each have committed to notify all policyholders who are still holders of the products concerned, that a certified representative will be available to answer any question related to the products.
Further details are available on the AMF’s website.
