About the Proposed Changes

Rule 6 (1)(b) Location Restrictions for Level 1 General Insurance Salespersons

Current Status Consultation on changes to Rule 6 (1)(b) is closed. Consultation feedback has been provided to the members of Council for review and decision.

 

 

What is this Rule about? What is its purpose?

Rule 6 establishes licence restrictions applicable to various classes of licence. Section 1 refers to General Insurance Salespersons, and paragraph (b) defines restrictions for where these licensees are able to carry out insurance business activities.

The rule wording for 6 (1)(b) is as follows:

• (1) The following restrictions are imposed on every general insurance salesperson licence:
  • …
  • (b)  the licensee must not carry on general insurance business in any place other than on the premises of the insurance agency the licensee is authorized to represent, except where the licensee has completed the Council Rules Course and held an active general insurance salesperson licence for 6 of the preceding 9 months and has met Council’s guidelines on the minimum training and experience necessary to engage in automobile insurance, at which time the licensee may conduct automobile insurance on the premises of an automobile wholesaler, dealer or auction, or a car rental business;
  •  

What’s the proposed change?

In March 2021, the Insurance Council consulted on a proposed amendment to Rule 6(1)(b) to permanently remove the location restriction for eligible level 1 licensees, permitting the ability to work offsite. Eligibility included a proposed requirement that the licensee have been actively licensed for 6 out of the preceding 24 months instead of the 9 months as stated above.

• (b)  the licensee must not carry on general insurance business in any place other than on the premises of the insurance agency the licensee is authorized to represent, except where the licensee has completed the Council Rules Course and held an active general insurance salesperson licence for 6 of the preceding 24 9 months and has met Council’s guidelines on the minimum training and experience necessary to engage in automobile insurance, at which time the licensee may conduct automobile insurance on the premises of an automobile wholesaler, dealer or auction, or a car rental business;

In response to stakeholder feedback, the Insurance Council is now proposing a revised amendment that would remove the restrictions limiting level 1 licensees’ insurance business activities to a specific location altogether.
 

• (b)  the licensee must not carry on general insurance business in any place other than on the premises of the insurance agency the licensee is authorized to represent, except where the licensee has completed the Council Rules Course and held an active general insurance salesperson licence for 6 of the preceding 9 months and has met Council’s guidelines on the minimum training and experience necessary to engage in automobile insurance, at which time the licensee may conduct automobile insurance on the premises of an automobile wholesaler, dealer or auction, or a car rental business;

This updated amendment would allow level 1 general salespersons to work remotely regardless of how long they have held a licence, as long as they meet the conditions of all level 1 licence restrictions, including direct supervision by a general insurance agent.

See the proposed rule change (.pdf)
 

Why revise the amendment that was proposed earlier?

During the consultation period held in Spring 2021, we received strong support for the permanent removal of the location restriction, as well as feedback that prompted further examination of the eligibility requirement based on the amount of time an individual held an active licence.

The rationale to remove the eligibility requirement of holding an active licence for 6 months out of the preceding 9 months is based on the premise that:
 

• The in-office experience and environment can vary greatly between agencies, therefore a one-size fits all length of time could be seen to be arbitrary.
• Salespersons would remain subject to the restrictions of their licence class regardless of where they are working, including direct supervision. This means agencies permitting work offsite would need to have technologies and procedures in place to ensure sufficient supervision and oversight to monitor salespersons' activities and compliance with their licence requirements.
• Agency nominees are best positioned to determine whether a salesperson is equipped to work outside the office based on their assessment of each salespersons' capabilities and the agency's technical capacity to effectively support remote work.
• While the amended rule would permit agencies to allow salespersons to work outside of the office, there is no requirement for agencies to do so.