The FSA took action following reports from two insurance brokers that Richard Michael Wolf had failed to pass on his clients' insurance premiums to them - leaving the clients potentially uninsured.
Wolf, who can no longer operate as an insurance broker was the sole director of Rotheville (Insurance Brokers) Limited which advised on and sold insurance - an organisation which can no longer conduct regulated business.
At one stage Wolf owed over £42,000 of clients' insurance premiums to various brokers. Additionally, investigators found that Wolf did not have adequate systems and controls in place to protect his customers. Wolf did not have processes to ensure that clients' premiums were passed on to insurers on a timely basis, to check that clients were insured, or to check when clients’ policies were due for renewal. He also failed to disclose information to the FSA.
Jonathan Phelan, head of retail enforcement at the FSA, said: "It is imperative that firms handle clients' money properly and do not leave them believing they are insured, when they are not.
"Mr Wolf's conduct was particularly serious as it left his customers at considerable risk. Stopping someone from carrying out regulated business in the financial services industry is one of the toughest actions the FSA can take and we feel it is necessary in this case to protect both consumers and the reputation of the market."
Rotheville (Insurance Brokers) Limited was based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, as was Mr. Wolf.
