The Financial Markets Authority is revoking the licence of a Christchurch-based insurance company, citing that the company’s director had threatened clients with deportation, which constituted a violation of ethical standards.
The FMA’s investigation revealed that Integrity Advisers Insurance Limited (Integrity), under the direction of Yuriy Bazhak, pressured clients who attempted to cancel their insurance policies between September 2022 and June 2023 to maintain their insurance by sending invoices that demanded payment within seven days or face fees.
Integrity charged the clients fees that exceeded the limits set by its own fee policy, and, in some instances, the fees matched the commission that Integrity would have lost upon the policy cancellations.
Integrity also informed some clients that failure to pay the fee would result in them being reported to Immigration NZ, which Integrity claimed could lead to visa cancellations or deportation.
Integrity did not report anything to Immigration New Zealand but severely misled an affected client by falsely claiming it had done so. The FMA also discovered that Integrity attempted to deceive them by altering an invoice before submitting it for investigation.
However, Integrity contradicted the allegations, claiming that invoicing errors were due to oversight or were insignificant. The company also denied misleading clients or the FMA.
“Mr. Bazhak not only risked causing serious harm to his clients but preyed on their vulnerability through the threat of involving Immigration New Zealand. Actions such as these undermine both the integrity and reputation of the financial advice profession,” FMA director of specialist supervision and response, Peter Taylor, said.
“Cancelling Integrity’s licence is one of the strongest tools the FMA can use against a FAP and sends a clear message that this sort of conduct is not acceptable,” he added.
Integrity had more than 500 retail clients, mainly from the Filipino community. Customers affected by Integrity’s practices will be contacted by new licenced financial advisers to ensure their ongoing needs are met.