Financial Sector Legislation Amendment (Prudential Refinements and Other Measures) Act 2010 (82 of 2010)

Schedule 2   Amendment of the Insurance Act 1973

Part 1   Amendments

35   At the end of Division 2 of Part IV

Add:

49D Auditor must notify APRA of attempts to unduly influence etc. the auditor

(1) If an auditor of a general insurer or authorised NOHC is aware of circumstances that amount to:

(a) an attempt by any person to unduly influence, coerce, manipulate or mislead the auditor in connection with the performance of the auditor's functions or duties; or

(b) an attempt by any person to otherwise interfere with the performance of the auditor's functions or duties;

the auditor must notify APRA in writing of those circumstances as soon as practicable, and in any case within 28 days, after the auditor becomes aware of those circumstances.

(2) An auditor commits an offence if the auditor contravenes subsection (1).

Penalty: Imprisonment for 12 months or 50 penalty units, or both.

49DA Giving false or misleading information to auditor

Offence - person knows the information is false or misleading etc.

(1) A person commits an offence if:

(a) the person is an employee or officer of a general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(b) the person gives information, or allows information to be given, to an auditor of the general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(c) the information relates to the affairs of the general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(d) the person knows that the information:

(i) is false or misleading in a material particular; or

(ii) is missing something that makes the information misleading in a material respect.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 5 years or 200 penalty units, or both.

Offence - person fails to ensure the information is not false or misleading etc.

(2) A person commits an offence if:

(a) the person is an employee or officer of a general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(b) the person gives information, or allows information to be given, to an auditor of the general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(c) the information relates to the affairs of the general insurer or authorised NOHC; and

(d) the information:

(i) is false or misleading in a material particular; or

(ii) is missing something that makes the information misleading in a material respect; and

(e) the person did not take reasonable steps to ensure that the information:

(i) was not false or misleading in a material particular; or

(ii) was not missing something that makes the information misleading in a material respect.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 2 years or 100 penalty units, or both.

Determining whether information is false or misleading

(3) If information is given to the auditor in response to a question asked by the auditor, the information and the question must be considered together in determining whether the information is false or misleading.