Family Fountain Insurance Brokers: Officials of fake insurance firm nabbed
The National Insurance Commission (NIC), in collaboration with the police, has arrested two officials of an unlicensed insurance brokerage firm operating under the name Family Fountain Insurance Brokers.
The suspects are currently in police custody, assisting in investigations, and if found culpable, they will face criminal prosecution according to law.
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Their arrest comes after weeks of surveillance and trailing by the Special Investigative Unit (SIU) of the NIC and the police.
A statement issued by the NIC after the arrest said the company had been operating for some time now as an intermediary, with the tacit connivance of an underwriting company.
The suspects, according to the statement, were operating from the premises of the Aayalolo Transport Terminal in Accra Central and served as an intermediary between the unsuspecting insuring public and a known licensed underwriting insurance company.
The name of the licensed underwriting company was, however, not disclosed due to ongoing investigations.
Special investigations
Providing further information on the arrest, the Deputy Commissioner of Insurance, Mr Michael Kofi Andoh, said the discreet approach employed by the SIU of the NIC and the police led to the suspects unknowingly disclosing their modus operandi on September 9, this year, after weeks of surveillance and trailing.
Armed with that information, the suspects were picked up by the police.
The NIC, he said, would also investigate the underwriting company involved and apply the relevant sanctions, as stipulated under the Insurance Act, 2006 (Act 742) of the National Insurance Commission (NIC), which made it a crime to engage any unlicensed insurance intermediary.
The Insurance Act also requires that before an entity commences insurance business in Ghana, it must be licensed by the NIC.
“Akin to driving without a licence, the NIC will not colour any pink as red when an individual or entity contravenes the law, with the aim of protecting innocent Ghanaians,” Mr Andoh said.
Advice to public
The deputy commissioner advised the insuring public to report the activities of any suspicious characters or companies trading or soliciting for insurance business without due authorisation to either the police or the nearest NIC office in any part of the country.
“It is important for the public to join us to condemn this practice and shame those involved, as we desire to have a sound, clean, financially stable insurance system,” he said.
Mr Andoh added that the public could verify the authenticity of any insurance entity in good standing by visiting the NIC website: www.nicgh.org.