More than $ 13 million in fines for false life insurance applications
The Court of Québec, District of Gatineau, has imposed fines totaling $13,055,984 on Michel Bernard for taking out life insurance policies for fictitious clients, following an agreement between the respondent and Quebec regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF).
Bernard pleaded guilty to both counts he faced, underlined the AMF. He provided false or misleading information to Equitable Life Insurance Company of Canada and Foresters Life Insurance Company by making false life insurance and health insurance applications for fictitious loan insurance customers.
FlashFinance.ca, a sister publication of Insurance Journal, previously reported that Bernard made 105 applications on behalf of 210 insureds to cover fictitious debts. The same scheme was used with another insurer, for 128 applications on behalf of 251 policyholders.
The events occurred between Dec. 2013 and Sept. 2016, while Bernard was with his company BGA Groupe Financier.
Since his firm went bankrupt, the AMF agreed to withdraw the two charges against BGA for providing false or misleading information to the insurers concerned.
Bernard was also permanently banned from Quebec’s Chambre de la sécurité financière in Nov. 2017.
The amount of the fines is double the amount of Bernard’s profit of $6,527,992, says the AMF.