The Hong Kong Insurance Authority (IA) has issued a warning to the public regarding a suspicious website identified as “https[:]//arvudainsurance[.]com” and an email domain labelled “@arvudainsurance.com.”
The IA advises caution, as the website and email domain claim affiliation with Arvuda Insurance Services Limited, a licensed insurance broker company in Hong Kong.
However, Arvuda has said that it does not operate any official website and has no association with the mentioned website or email domain.
Individuals who have provided personal information through the fraudulent website or email, or who have conducted insurance transactions via the site, are urged to promptly notify Arvuda at [email protected] or (852) 2219 8282. Additionally, they are encouraged to report the incident to the Hong Kong Police Force.
For accurate information on licensed insurance intermediaries in Hong Kong, the public is directed to consult the Register of Licensed Insurance Intermediaries available on the IA website.
Last month, the IA issued a notice to the public regarding another deceptive website, which falsely purported to be the official site of YF Life Insurance International Limited (YF Life). The insurer confirmed that it has no connection with the website.
Aside from issuing a notice regarding a suspicious website, the IA this month implemented disciplinary measures against two former insurance agents for submitting counterfeit academic certificates to meet the minimum education requirements under the previous self-regulatory system.
In the first case, the former agent admitted to providing false information to the Insurance Agents Registration Board (IARB) on two occasions – initially during her registration in 2013 and subsequently during her renewal in 2019. As a consequence of this misconduct, the IA has imposed a 36-month ban.
In the second instance, the former agent confessed to submitting fabricated academic credentials to the IARB during the 2016 registration process. In light of the severity of the offense and the agent’s cooperation in acknowledging the wrongdoing, the regulator has issued a 23-month ban.
The IA emphasised the importance of compliance, underscoring that such actions jeopardise the interests of policyholders by potentially exposing them to advice from agents lacking the requisite educational standards and demonstrating compromised ethics by employing false certificates.
These incidents occurred prior to the IA assuming regulatory oversight of licensed insurance intermediaries on Sept. 23, 2019, and were managed in accordance with the relevant requirements and disciplinary procedures of the IARB.
