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on september 9, the liaoning branch of the state financial regulatory administration issued four fines, and china life beijing telemarketing center and fude life insurance liaoning branch were fined for deceiving policyholders.

specifically, fude life insurance liaoning branch was fined rmb 210,000 for deceiving policyholders; jia shukui, then deputy general manager of fude life insurance liaoning branch, was warned and fined rmb 70,000. huaxia life insurance beijing telephone sales center was fined rmb 50,000 for deceiving policyholders and concealing important information related to insurance contracts from policyholders; wang yong, then head of huaxia life insurance beijing telephone sales center, was fined rmb 10,000.

"daily economic news" reporters noticed that deceiving policyholders is not an isolated case. this phenomenon often occurs in life insurance, property insurance and insurance brokerage companies.as a consumer, how can you avoid being deceived by agents or telemarketers?industry insiders suggest thaton the one hand,you can identify the professionalism of an agent by understanding their sales qualifications, work experience, customer reviews, or performance.on the other hand,when taking out insurance, pay special attention to important clauses in the insurance contract, such as insurance liability and exemption clauses.

many insurance companies have been fined for deceiving policyholders

telemarketing, intermediaries, agents, etc. are the main channels for insurance sales. however, in order to achieve their sales goals, some sales personnel fail to truthfully introduce policy terms to policyholders, conceal or even distort important information from policyholders, causing policyholders to make insurance decisions under deception or misleading circumstances.

the reporter of daily economic news noticed that since this year, many insurance institutions and insurance intermediaries have been fined for deceiving insurance agents. for example, anrun international insurance brokers (beijing) co., ltd. was warned and fined 610,000 yuan for deceiving policyholders with false information such as "discounts" and "winning prizes" in internet insurance sales, failing to conduct traceable management of internet insurance sales in accordance with regulations, and using other improper means to induce policyholders to enter into insurance contracts.

regulators have also issued risk warnings on multiple occasions regarding related behaviors and reminded consumers to correctly understand the insurance protection function and not be misled by high interest rates.however, judging from the fines issued by regulators, behaviors such as deceiving agents have not completely disappeared. why does deceiving policyholders still occur from time to time?

the reporter noticed that in the highly standardized field of the insurance industry, although the boards of directors and senior management teams of insurance companies as a whole organizational structure generally show a high degree of integrity and responsibility, a few grassroots operators of insurance companies, motivated by the pursuit of premium growth, improving performance and profits, and satisfying departmental and personal interests, take advantage of consumers' lack of understanding of insurance terms and conditions, and deliberately conceal key information, exaggerate product benefits, or engage in misleading publicity to induce policyholders to make purchasing decisions under conditions of information asymmetry, ultimately purchasing insurance products that do not meet their needs.

in this regard, yang fan, general manager of beijing paipai insurance agency co., ltd., suggested that insurance companies should establish and improve the selection and training mechanism for insurance agents to ensure that agents have professional qualities. at the same time, they should strengthen daily supervision of agents, strictly implement the assessment system, and severely deal with violations. in addition, insurance companies should formulate clear regulations and systems to guide agents to operate in compliance.

consumers need to pay attention to contract details such as exemption clauses when purchasing insurance

in order to reduce the occurrence of fraudulent behavior towards policyholders, regulators have also issued a number of policy regulations and taken necessary rectification actions in the past two years to strengthen the management of insurance sales practices and protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

as early as 2021, the former china banking and insurance regulatory commission carried out in-depth special work to manage the chaos in the personal insurance market. in terms of sales behavior, the focus is on managing behaviors such as misleading consumers, alienated products, and improper management during the sales process. in september 2023, the state financial supervision and administration bureau issued the "insurance sales behavior management measures", which divides insurance sales behavior into three stages: pre-insurance sales behavior, insurance sales behavior, and insurance sales behavior. differentiate the characteristics of different stages and regulate them separately.

in terms of penalty intensity, regulators have also put in a lot of effort. in april this year, an insurance agent was given the maximum penalty of "lifetime ban".

in addition to relying on internal institutional regulations and regulatory penalties, what issues do consumers need to pay attention to when purchasing insurance products?yang fan believes that there are two ways to start. first, if you are buying insurance offline, find a reliable insurance agent. when consumers buy insurance offline, they should understand the agent's qualifications and work experience. they can also check the agent's performance and customer reviews to identify their professionalism. excellent agents will patiently listen to customer needs and provide suitable product recommendations.

secondly, read the contract details carefully when taking out insurance.on the one hand,when purchasing insurance, consumers need to pay special attention to important terms in the insurance contract, such as insurance liability, exemption clauses, insurance amount, protection period, insurance premium rate, etc.on the other hand,you should also pay attention to details such as the claims process and refund regulations in the contract to ensure that your rights and interests are protected.

as the risk warning issued by the hebei regulatory bureau of the state financial supervision and administration bureau said, do not blindly follow the trend, and confirm the content of the insurance contract before purchasing insurance. the coverage provided by the insurance product is based on the insurance liability in the contract terms. consumers should not blindly believe in publicity and marketing. they should understand the product underwriting agency, coverage, exclusions, etc. in detail according to their own needs, carefully choose the most suitable insurance product for themselves, and guard against risks such as confusion, ambiguity, and exaggeration of insurance liability during the marketing process. before purchasing and paying insurance premiums, you must carefully check the insurance type and understand the important terms of the contract before purchasing insurance.

daily economic news