AXA CHINA SUES PACIFIC CENTURY INSURANCE AND NINE AGENTS

Hong Kong insurance group AXA China Region is taking legal action against domestic company Pacific Century Insurance (PCI) and nine of its agents over an alleged scheme to steal AXA clients. AXA China Region, a member of the French group, said that it was claiming unspecified damages from and seeking a number of injunctions against PCI and the agents, who previously worked for AXA China Region. It alleges in court documents that PCI devised a plan “whereby its agents would approach AXA China Region policyholders and seek to persuade them to surrender their existing policies with AXA China Region”. PCI would then replace AXA China Region policies with policies issued by the former, on the basis that the new policies would match the surrendered policies, which AXA China Region said was not actually the case. AXA China Region also accuses its former agents of “having wrongfully retained and used confidential information about policyholders of AXA China Region for the purpose of implementing the plan-matching scheme”. AXA China Region CEO Mark Pearson said that “we have endeavoured to have these matters addressed directly and professionally, but to no avail. It is with much regret that Hong Kong’s insurance industry must be faced with the indignity of court action”. PCI, which is a is a unit of Singapore-listed investment holding company Pacific Century Regional Development, said that it would “vigorously defend” legal proceedings.