ASIC permanently bans South Australian insurance broker
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has permanently banned Christopher John Griggs, a sole director of South Australia-based insurance broker Chris Griggs Insurance Offices Pty Ltd, from providing financial services for submitting false applications.
According to ASIC, Griggs had submitted applications for insurance premium loan funding to Elantis Premium Funding Limited without the knowledge of the named applicants and had forged their signatures.
In this way, he had obtained a direct financial benefit totalling $155,002.87 and commissions of $1,705.02 as the approved loan funds were paid into his bank account.
ASIC's deputy chairman, Peter Kell, said: "Dishonest conduct will not be tolerated by ASIC. Consumers are entitled to expect that insurance brokers will uphold the highest standards of conduct, so as to maximise their confidence in the financial system".
"Mr Griggs' conduct fell well and truly short of that standard."
Griggs has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for review of ASIC's decision.
AUTHOR
Oksana Patron
Recommended for you
The director of Ascent Investment and Coaching, Michael Dunjey, has been charged with 33 criminal offences.
Adviser Ratings’ latest financial landscape report finds there is a demographic of advice practices achieving an average revenue of $5 million, with only 3 per cent of practices overall seeing a revenue decline.
The FAAA is calling for regulators to take a partnership approach with financial advisers regarding incoming legislation, rather than treating the industry as “guinea pigs”.
There have been strong numbers of returning advisers this year so far, according to Wealth Data, already surpassing the same period for 2024.
