FICOM will no longer perform bankruptcy, criminal record checks for prospective insurance company directors, executives

British Columbia’s Financial Institutions Commission (FICOM) will no longer perform bankruptcy or criminal record checks for directors, senior officers or significant shareholders of insurance companies or captive insurers.
Instead, candidates for these positions will have to bankroll their own criminal record and bankruptcy checks.
As part of the application process, the Financial Institutions Act requires directors, senior officers and significant shareholders to submit completed personal information returns (PIRs) to the Superintendent of Financial Institutions to demonstrate they are suitable to be in a position of responsibility.
Upon receipt of PIRs, FICOM staff members conduct a number of checks to determine the person’s suitability, including bankruptcy and criminal record checks.
As of Aug. 1, 2011, FICOM will no longer conduct these checks.
“Consequently, any person submitting a PIR to this office must also provide, at their own expense, a criminal record check, conducted by the appropriate policy agency, and a bankruptcy check conducted through the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada,” a FICOM release says.
These must be dated within 90 days of FICOM’s receipt to be considered valid.