TAL Direct slapped with $10k fine

insurance/ASIC/advertising/TAL/

2 December 2015
| By Malavika |
image
image
expand image

TAL Direct, trading as InsuranceLine, has paid a $10,200 penalty after the corporate regulator slapped an infringement notice for false and misleading advertisements promoting its income protection product.

The advertisement showed a scenario where a woman was inflicted with a bite while in Bali, which would lead to an infection and force her to take leave from work for five weeks.

It then said her and her husband's Income Protection Plus that she took out last year would provide them with income while she was recovering.

The advertisement also included various fine print statements at the bottom of the screen, including: "waiting periods, payout periods, limitations and exclusions apply".

ASIC said the fine print in the advertisement did not clarify any misleading impression created from viewing the advertisement, due to lack of clarity, detail, and prominence.

ASIC believed the advertisements could be false or misleading as they gave the impression that a person off work for five weeks due to ill-health would be eligible to:

  • A benefit from the product for the entire five weeks when, in fact, there would be a waiting period of at least 14 days, and up to 28, 60 or 90 days for a person's claim, depending on the policy. The person would not be entitled to any benefit during this time; and
  • Receive at least part of any benefits to which they were entitled into their bank account during the time they took off work. But the product's product disclosure statement said the claimants would be paid a month in debts, and only after it was confirmed they had been continuously off work for the duration of the waiting period.

ASIC deputy chairman, Peter Kell, said consumers could not access the portrayed benefits due to the way the product was designed.

"Promoted benefits of a product must be consistent with what the product will in practice provide," Kell said.

InsuranceLine stopped broadcasting the advertisement after ASIC notified it of its concerns.

The penalty payment is not an admission of a breach of the ASIC Act consumer protection provisions, ASIC said.

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest news and developments in wealth management industry

MARKET INSIGHTS

So we are now underwriting criminal scams?...

2 months 3 weeks ago

Glad to see the back of you Steve. You made financial more expensive, not more affordable as you claim, and presided ...

2 months 3 weeks ago

Completely agree Peter. The definition of 'significant change is circumstances relevant to the scope of the advice' is s...

4 months 3 weeks ago

ASIC has suspended the Australian Financial Services Licence of a Melbourne-based financial advice firm....

1 week 3 days ago

The corporate regulator has issued infringement notices to three AFSLs whose financial advisers provided personal advice to a retail client while unregistered....

2 weeks 2 days ago

ASIC has released the results of its first adviser exam to be held in 2025, with 241 candidates attempting the test....

3 weeks ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND