Clare Ogilvie, The Province

He wasn't allowed to work in insurance, mortgage industries

WHISTLER - A Surrey man who is simultaneously running for mayor of Whistler and for council in his hometown was at one time barred from working as an insurance agent for being untrustworthy.

An Insurance Council of B.C. decision from July 2002 says Jagmohan Bhandari "failed to act in a trustworthy and competent manner, in good faith and in accordance with the usual practice of the business of insurance."

The comments stem from an investigation of Bhandari by the council into activities he performed after switching employment from American Income Life Insurance to London Life Insurance.

"He misstated the applicant's existing insurance on the insurance application, he improperly advised three clients to cancel insurance prior to replacing, and that is a very serious one because . . . you never have someone cancel an existing policy until a new one is in effect," said Gerald Matier, executive director of the council. "If it turns out that there is a medical issue that comes up, they could find themselves . . . uninsured.

"He also had a client replace an existing contract that was not in a client's best interests."

The decision also states: "The Council determined that the nature of [Bhandari's] contact with the Clients indicated that his insurance recommendations were motivated by personal gain and not the best interests of each Client."

Insurance agents receive commissions for their work.

Despite the findings, Bhandari was offered a second chance if he upgraded his education in the field and found a mentor.

Matier admits the education requirements at that time were not as stringent as they are now.

"[The council] obviously didn't feel that he was unsuitable to be licensed. They didn't feel he was such a public risk that, no, you can't be in the business, but they certainly felt that if he was going to remain in the business they wanted him to be supervised from that point on," he said.

Bhandari did get his licence back in 2005. According to the council, it lapsed in 2007.

The issues with the Insurance Council reached into Bhandari's operations as a mortgage broker and a real-estate agent through the Financial Institutions Commission of B.C. as well.

FICOM is an agency of the provincial government, which administers 10 statutes providing regulatory rules for the protection of the public in fields including real estate, mortgage brokers, insurance and several other areas of service.

Bhandari was suspended as a mortgage broker due to the decision of the Insurance Council, said Ken Fraser, executive director of investigations for FICOM.

"We suspended him. We refused to allow him to continue registration primarily because it appears that he was a person, at the time, of unsuitable character," he said. "We based our information primarily on the information received from the Insurance Council."

Bhandari has been registered as a mortgage broker since December 2003. His company is Centum Aan The Spot Mortgage, as listed on the disclosure forms he filed for candidacy for mayor and councillor. The Real Estate Council of B.C also confirms he has been licensed at the representative level since 2002.