Dummy insurance agent admits $120,000 commission and bonus fraud revealed in ICAC graft probe
2022-12-5
An insurance agent, charged by the ICAC, today (December 5) admitted at the Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts that he had defrauded an insurer of commissions and bonus totalling over $120,000 by making false representations that a number of insurance policies were handled by him, which was revealed in the course of a corruption investigation.
Wong Chau-ying, 26, former insurance agent of FWD Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Limited (FWD), pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud, contrary to Common Law. The prosecution offered no evidence to another similar charge against him.
Magistrate Ms Stephanie Tsui May-har adjourned the case to December 19 for sentence, pending the defendant’s community service order report. The defendant was granted bail.
The court heard that at the material time, the defendant was an insurance agent of FWD. When an insurance product was sold, FWD would release commission and overriding commission respectively to the handling agent and his/her up-line manager. Bonuses would also release to them should they meet the sales target.
Between December 2018 and June 2019, FWD received three insurance application forms submitted via the defendant’s computer account. Believing that the applications were handled by the defendant, FWD approved them and released to the defendant commissions of over $75,000 and bonus of about $46,000.
The ICAC investigation arose from a corruption complaint. Enquiries revealed that the three application forms were not submitted and handled by the defendant. He was out of Hong Kong when two of the above application forms were submitted to FWD via his computer account. The computer account was not operated by him and he only collected salary of around $1,000 to $2,000 per month.
Had FWD known that the three insurance application forms contained false information, it would not have underwritten, issued the insurance policies and paid the commissions and bonus to the defendant.
FWD had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.
The prosecution was today represented by ICAC officer Jessica Fung.
Wong Chau-ying, 26, former insurance agent of FWD Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Limited (FWD), pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud, contrary to Common Law. The prosecution offered no evidence to another similar charge against him.
Magistrate Ms Stephanie Tsui May-har adjourned the case to December 19 for sentence, pending the defendant’s community service order report. The defendant was granted bail.
The court heard that at the material time, the defendant was an insurance agent of FWD. When an insurance product was sold, FWD would release commission and overriding commission respectively to the handling agent and his/her up-line manager. Bonuses would also release to them should they meet the sales target.
Between December 2018 and June 2019, FWD received three insurance application forms submitted via the defendant’s computer account. Believing that the applications were handled by the defendant, FWD approved them and released to the defendant commissions of over $75,000 and bonus of about $46,000.
The ICAC investigation arose from a corruption complaint. Enquiries revealed that the three application forms were not submitted and handled by the defendant. He was out of Hong Kong when two of the above application forms were submitted to FWD via his computer account. The computer account was not operated by him and he only collected salary of around $1,000 to $2,000 per month.
Had FWD known that the three insurance application forms contained false information, it would not have underwritten, issued the insurance policies and paid the commissions and bonus to the defendant.
FWD had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation into the case.
The prosecution was today represented by ICAC officer Jessica Fung.