"Strengthening Insurance Fraud Response"... Financial Supervisory Service and Insurance Industry Unite

On the 27th, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced that it held a meeting with executives from the insurance industry, chaired by the Deputy Director in charge of Consumer Finance.

At this meeting, detailed implementation plans were discussed to effectively respond to insurance fraud in line with the purpose of the amendment to the "Special Act on the Prevention of Insurance Fraud." They also consulted on key tasks to be prioritized in the second half of the year to strengthen investigation and punishment of insurance fraud and enhance the effectiveness of victim relief.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Deputy Director in charge of Consumer Finance at the FSS, who attended the meeting, stated, "The amendment to the Special Act reflects the public consensus that the spread of insurance fraud, which increases the economic burden on the people, can no longer be tolerated." He added, "In accordance with the purpose of the law amendment, the FSS and the insurance industry will further solidify the cooperative system with related agencies to actively respond to insurance fraud (including mediation and advertising)."

The FSS provided the insurance industry with practical standards prepared through close consultation with the National Police Agency and the Korea Communications Standards Commission as detailed implementation measures related to the amendment of the Insurance Fraud Prevention Act. Acts such as mediation of insurance fraud will be actively referred for investigation according to standards pre-agreed with the police, and related advertisements will be promptly requested for deletion by the Communications Standards Commission. Additionally, detailed provisions for relief of automobile insurance fraud victims will be codified, and related systems and operational standards will be improved to enhance the effectiveness of victim relief. Furthermore, it was decided to actively promote the fact that under the amended law, acts of mediation, inducement, solicitation, or advertising of insurance fraud will be severely punished.

The FSS plans to strengthen investigations into organized insurance fraud involving brokers and medical institutions, as well as intentional automobile accidents, in the second half of this year by requesting data from the National Health Insurance Service and the Korea Transportation Safety Authority. It also plans to actively promote and support amendments to the Insurance Business Act to enable the prompt cancellation of registration for agents involved in insurance fraud. An FSS official said, "Going forward, the FSS will continue to strengthen cooperation not only with the insurance industry but also with related agencies such as the National Police Agency to actively respond to insurance fraud that infringes on the livelihood of the people."