Ethics Fair Treatment & Professional Conduct question: split and restructure the couple's jointly owned policies

EthicsFair Treatment & Professional Conduct

An agent is asked to advise both spouses in a bitter divorce on how to split and restructure the couple's jointly owned policies. Each spouse wants the opposite outcome. What does the guidance expect if the conflict cannot be managed satisfactorily?

A Act for both; let the insurer decide
B Act for whichever spouse pays
C Decline to act for either spouse
D Act for both and disclose it

Show the answer and explanation

Answer: C. Decline to act for either spouse

The guidance gives as an example of a conflict the situation where an intermediary owes a duty to two or more customers in the same or related matters. Where conflicts of interest cannot be managed satisfactorily, the insurer or intermediary is expected to decline to act. Source: CCIR/CISRO, Guidance: Conduct of Insurance Business and Fair Treatment of Customers (Sept 2018; in force as at 12 Oct 2026), s. 6.2.

Common mistake

Believing disclosure always makes a conflict acceptable.

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Original study material mapped to the public CISRO curriculum; not a real test question.Not affiliated with CISRO, CCIR or any provincial insurance regulator. Verify figures and rules against current guidance before relying on them.