Adviser Banned Over Insurance Best Interests Failures

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ASIC has banned Sydney-based financial adviser, Tarandeep Aujla, from providing financial services for three years after an ASIC surveillance showed that he failed to act in his clients’ best interests.

ASIC reviewed advice provided by Aujla to his clients while he was an authorised representative of Australian financial services (AFS) licensees Infocus Securities Australia and Chaucer Group.

The regulator’s surveillance found Aujla had:

  • Failed to obtain adequate information from clients about their personal circumstances including financial details, needs and objectives
  • Recommended new insurance products to his clients without identifying or considering their existing products
  • Made recommendations about the level of insurance cover based solely on client direction instead of undertaking a thorough analysis of their needs or determining the impact of the insurance premiums on their superannuation balance

“When providing personal financial advice, financial advisers have a legal obligation to act in the best interests of their clients,” ASIC noted in a statement.

“Advisers must take reasonable steps to understand and take into consideration the clients’ personal circumstances when providing personal advice, and not rely solely on client direction. ASIC expects advisers to adequately demonstrate why the advice is appropriate and why it is in their clients’ best interests.”

Aujla has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of ASIC’s decision.