Insurance companies and policy holders in Shanghai will be able to better track the accountability of their agents as their credit information will be collected into the Shanghai Consumer Credit Database System (CCDS).

The new practice, initiated by the Shanghai Insurance Association (SIA), is asking all life insurers in Shanghai to sign Integrity Guarantee Letters with their agents, whose numbers have reached 40,000, so that their business credit information will be keyed into the Shanghai CCDS by the end of June.

Although the detailed content of the disclosure has not been agreed to between the association and its members, SIA Chairwoman He Jingzhi said they will formulate it in a rigid manner.

Starting from July 1, insurance companies and their clients will be able to call up Shanghai Credit Information Services Co Ltd (SCIS), the owner of CCDS to check the agent's certificate numbers and previous business records, such as awards and disciplinary measures taken against them.

But to do so, they must have the authorization of the agent and the information is available in the system.

Insurance companies can also use it to check their new agents' credit records. Irregularities the agents are responsible for on the job may also affect decisions by banks when they apply for personal loans or credit cards.

"This is a great breakthrough in Shanghai's insurance integrity construction," said CIRC's Shanghai Bureau Commissioner Sun Guodong at a meeting Tuesday.

He said the insurance industry does not have a very respected image among members of the public due to irregularities by some agents and insurance companies.

The CIRC Shanghai bureau has often received complaints about agents cheating or misleading customers who are buying products.

Some agents have even misused premiums from their clients, which leads to losses for both insurance companies and customers.

(China Daily May 19, 2004)