Marsh’s Philippine unit has requested the market’s regulator to issue a gag order that will prevent media from covering the ongoing investigation on its alleged violation of Philippine insurance laws.
Prudential Guarantee and Assurance (PGA), a local insurer unrelated to both the British and American companies, accused Marsh of directly soliciting insurance business from airline Cebu Air Inc. using “fronting insurers” to do business in the country. According to PGA’s lawyer Jose Bernas, this violated the Amended Insurance Code which prohibits a reinsurance broker such as Marsh from directly offering insurance services to a client.
A report by The Manila Times said that Marsh filed a motion with the Insurance Commission, claiming that PGA’s representatives have made statements to the media despite being instructed by the regulator to remain silent, in respect of the confidentiality of mediation proceedings.
“In contrast, all Marsh respondents have at all times respected the confidentiality of the mediation proceedings and as a result have exercised great restraint to refrain from responding to these published falsehoods,” the motion said.
Marsh also claimed that PGA was attempting to influence the regulator or obstruct the case.
However, Bernas denied the reinsurance brokerage’s claims.
“My client merely informed the Insurance Commission that someone was not operating within the established rules,” he said.
Bernas also disagreed with issuing a gag order, saying this was not a mere issue between two companies.
“This is a government agency investigating allegations of unlawful and unethical activity,” he said. “The public has every right to know about that.”
