Insurance Companies Act (S.C. 1991, c. 47)

Marginal note:Renewal statement

482.1 If a company makes a loan in respect of which the disclosure requirements of section 480 apply and the loan is secured by a mortgage on real property, the company shall disclose to the borrower, at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner, any information that is prescribed respecting the renewal of the loan.

Marginal note:Disclosure in advertising

483 No person shall authorize the publication, issue or appearance of any advertisement in Canada relating to arrangements referred to in subsection 482(3), loans, credit cards, payment cards or charge cards, offered to natural persons by a company, and purporting to disclose prescribed information about the cost of borrowing or about any other matter unless the advertisement discloses prescribed information at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner.

Marginal note:Disclosing borrowing costs — advances

484 If regulations have been made respecting the manner in which the cost of borrowing is to be disclosed in respect of an advance on the security or against the cash surrender value of a policy, a company shall not make such an advance unless the cost of borrowing, as calculated and expressed in accordance with the regulations, has, at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner, been disclosed by the company or otherwise as prescribed to the policyholder at or before the time when the advance is made.

Marginal note:Regulations re borrowing costs

485 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) respecting the time and place at which, and the form and manner in which, a company is to disclose to a borrower

  • (i) the cost of borrowing,

  • (ii) any rebate of the cost of borrowing, and

  • (iii) any other information relating to a loan, arrangement, credit card, payment card or charge card referred to in section 482;

• (b) respecting the contents of any statement disclosing the cost of borrowing and other information required to be disclosed by a company to a borrower;

• (c) respecting the manner of calculating the cost of borrowing;

• (d) respecting the circumstances under which the cost of borrowing is to be expressed as an amount in dollars and cents;

• (e) specifying any class of loans that are not to be subject to section 479.1 or subsection 480(1) or 482(1) or (3) or section 482.1 or 483 or the regulations or any specified provisions of the regulations;

• (f) specifying any class of advances that are not to be subject to section 484 or the regulations or any specified provisions of the regulations;

• (g) respecting the time and place at which, and the form and manner in which, any rights, obligations, charges or penalties referred to in sections 479.1 to 484 are to be disclosed;

• (h) prohibiting the imposition of any charge or penalty referred to in section 482 or providing that the charge or penalty, if imposed, will not exceed a prescribed amount;

• (i) respecting the nature or amount of any charge or penalty referred to in paragraph 482(1)(b), (2)(a) or (3)(a) and the costs of the company that may be included or excluded in the determination of the charge or penalty;

• (j) respecting the method of calculating the amount of rebate of the cost of borrowing, or the portion of the cost of borrowing referred to in subparagraph 482(1)(a)(ii);

• (k) respecting advertisements made by a company regarding arrangements referred to in subsection 482(3), loans, credit cards, payment cards or charge cards;

• (l) respecting the renewal of loans; and

• (m) respecting such other matters or things as are necessary to carry out the purposes of sections 479.1 to 484.

Complaints

Marginal note:Procedures for dealing with complaints

• 486 (1) A company shall

  • (a) establish procedures for dealing with complaints made by persons having requested or received products or services in Canada from the company;

  • (b) designate an officer or employee of the company to be responsible for implementing those procedures; and

  • (c) designate one or more officers or employees of the company to receive and deal with those complaints.

• Marginal note:Procedures to be filed with Commissioner

  (2) A company shall file with the Commissioner a copy of its procedures established under paragraph (1)(a).

• Marginal note:How procedures to be made available

  (3) A company shall make its procedures established under paragraph (1)(a) available

  • (a) on its websites through which products or services are offered in Canada; and

  • (b) in written format to be sent to any person who requests them.

• Marginal note:Information on contacting Agency

  (4) A company shall also make prescribed information on how to contact the Agency available whenever it makes its procedures established under paragraph (1)(a) available under subsection (3).

Marginal note:Obligation to be member of complaints body

486.1 In any province, if there is no law of the province that makes a company subject to the jurisdiction of an organization that deals with complaints made by persons having requested or received products or services in the province from a company, the company shall be a member of an organization that is not controlled by it and that deals with those complaints that have not been resolved to the satisfaction of the persons under procedures established by companies under paragraph 486(1)(a).

Marginal note:Information on contacting Agency

• 487 (1) A company shall, in accordance with the regulations, at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner, provide a person requesting or receiving a product or service from it with prescribed information on how to contact the Agency if the person has a complaint about an arrangement referred to in subsection 482(3), a payment, credit or charge card, the disclosure of or manner of calculating the cost of borrowing in respect of a loan or an advance on the security or against the cash surrender value of a policy, or about any other obligation of the company under a consumer provision.

• Marginal note:Report

  (2) The Commissioner shall prepare a report, to be included in the report referred to in section 34 of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Act, respecting

  • (a) procedures for dealing with complaints established by companies pursuant to paragraph 486(1)(a); and

  • (b) the number and nature of complaints that have been brought to the attention of the Agency by persons who have requested or received a product or service from a company.

Miscellaneous

Marginal note:Prepayment protected

• 488 (1) A company shall not make a loan to a natural person that is repayable in Canada, the terms of which prohibit prepayment of the money advanced or any instalment thereon before its due date.

• Marginal note:Non-application of subsection (1)

  (2) Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of a loan

  • (a) that is secured by a mortgage on real property; or

  • (b) that is made for business purposes and the principal amount of which is more than $100,000 or such other amount as may be prescribed.

Marginal note:Regulations — activities

488.1 The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting any matters involving a company’s dealings, or its employees’ or representatives’ dealings, with customers or the public, including

• (a) what a company may or may not do in carrying out any of the activities in which it is permitted to engage, or in providing any of the services that it may provide, under section 440 and any ancillary, related or incidental activities or services; and

• (b) the time and place at which and the form and manner in which any of those activities are to be carried out or any of those services are to be provided.

Marginal note:Regulations re customer information

489 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) requiring a company or society to establish procedures regarding the collection, retention, use and disclosure of any information about its customers or members or any class of customers or members;

• (b) requiring a company or society to establish procedures for dealing with complaints made by a customer or member about the collection, retention, use or disclosure of information about the customer or member;

• (c) respecting the disclosure by a company or society of information relating to the procedures referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b);

• (d) requiring a company or society to designate its officers and employees who are responsible for

  • (i) implementing the procedures referred to in paragraph (b), and

  • (ii) receiving and dealing with complaints made by a customer or member of the company or society about the collection, retention, use or disclosure of information about the customer or member;

• (e) requiring a company or society to report information relating to

  • (i) complaints made by customers or members of the company or society about the collection, retention, use or disclosure of information, and

  • (ii) the actions taken by the company or society to deal with the complaints; and

• (f) defining “information”, “collection” and “retention” for the purposes of paragraphs (a) to (e) and the regulations made under those paragraphs.

Marginal note:Public accountability statements

• 489.1 (1) A company with equity of $1 billion or more shall, in accordance with regulations made under subsection (4), annually publish a statement describing the contribution of the company and its prescribed affiliates to the Canadian economy and society.

• Marginal note:Filing

  (2) A company shall, at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner, file a copy of the statement with the Commissioner.

• Marginal note:Provision of statement to public

  (3) A company shall, at the prescribed time and place and in the prescribed form and manner, disclose the statement to its customers and to the public.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (4) The Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing

  • (a) the name, contents and form of a statement referred to in subsection (1) and the time and place at which and the manner in which it must be prepared;

  • (b) affiliates of a company referred to in subsection (1);

  • (c) the time and place at which and the form and manner in which a statement must be filed under subsection (2); and

  • (d) the time and place at which and the form and manner in which a statement mentioned in subsection (3) is to be disclosed, respectively, to a company’s customers and to the public.

Marginal note:Regulations re disclosure

489.2 The Governor in Council may, subject to any other provisions of this Act relating to the disclosure of information, make regulations respecting the disclosure of information by companies or any prescribed class of companies, including regulations respecting

• (a) the information that must be disclosed, including information relating to

  • (i) any product or service or prescribed class of products or services offered by them,

  • (ii) any of their policies, procedures or practices relating to the offer by them of any product or service or prescribed class of products or services,

  • (iii) anything they are required to do or to refrain from doing under a consumer provision, and

  • (iv) any other matter that may affect their dealings, or their employees’ or representatives’ dealings, with customers or the public;

• (b) the time and place at which, the form and manner in which and the persons to whom information is to be disclosed; and

• (c) the content and form of any advertisement by companies or any prescribed class of companies relating to any matter referred to in paragraph (a).

Marginal note:Provisions that do not apply

• 489.3 (1) Paragraphs 165(2)(f) and (g) and sections 479 to 489.2 do not apply in respect of a company if

  • (a) the order approving the commencement and carrying on of business by the company restricts it to the reinsurance of risks within a class of insurance specified in the order;

  • (b) it has provided the Commissioner with a declaration stating that it is not dealing with a prescribed group of consumers or carrying on any prescribed activity; and

  • (c) after providing the declaration, it continues to not deal with that prescribed group.

• Marginal note:Notice if action taken that causes provisions to apply

  (2) The company must give notice to the Commissioner if it subsequently deals with the prescribed group referred to in the declaration.

PART IXInvestments

Definitions and Application

Marginal note:Definitions

• 490 (1) The definitions in this subsection apply in this Part.

  business growth fund

  business growth fund means Canadian Business Growth Fund (GP) Inc., a corporation incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act. (fonds de croissance des entreprises)

  closed-end fund

  closed-end fund means an entity whose activities are limited to investing the funds of the entity so as to provide investment diversification and professional investment management to the holders of its securities, and whose securities are

  • (a) fixed in number and distributed to the public in an offering under a preliminary prospectus, prospectus, short-form prospectus or similar document in accordance with the laws of a province or a foreign jurisdiction;

  • (b) traded on an exchange or an over-the-counter market; and

  • (c) liquidated on a fixed future termination date, the proceeds of which are allocated to the holders of the securities on a proportional basis. (fonds d’investissement à capital fixe)

  commercial loan

  commercial loan means

  • (a) any loan made or acquired by a company, other than

    • (i) a loan to a natural person in an amount of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars or less,

    • (ii) a loan to the Government of Canada, the government of a province, a municipality, or to any agency thereof, or to the government of a foreign country or any political subdivision thereof, or any agency thereof, or to a prescribed international agency,

    • (iii) a loan that is guaranteed by, or fully secured by securities issued by, a government, a municipality or an agency referred to in subparagraph (ii),

    • (iv) a loan that is secured by a mortgage on real property, if

      • (A) the mortgage is on residential property and the amount of the loan, together with the amount then outstanding of any mortgage having an equal or prior claim against the property, does not exceed 80% of the value of the property at the time the loan is made or acquired, or

      • (B) the mortgage is on real property other than residential property and

        • (I) the amount of the loan, together with the amount then outstanding of any mortgage having an equal or prior claim against the property, does not exceed 80% of the value of the property at the time the loan is made or acquired, and

        • (II) at the time the loan is made or acquired, the property provides an annual income sufficient to pay all annual expenses related to the property, including the payments owing under the mortgage and the mortgages having an equal or prior claim against the property,

    • (v) a loan that is secured by a mortgage on real property, if

      • (A) the mortgage is on residential property and

        • (I) the amount of the loan, together with the amount then outstanding of any mortgage having an equal or prior claim against the property, exceeds 80% of the value of the property at the time the loan is made or acquired, and

        • (II) repayment of the amount of the loan that exceeds 80% of the value of the property is guaranteed or insured by a government agency or private insurer approved by the Superintendent,

      • (B) the mortgage is on real property other than residential property and

        • (I) the amount of the loan, together with the amount then outstanding of any mortgage having an equal or prior claim against the property, exceeds 80% of the value of the property at the time the loan is made or acquired,

        • (II) repayment of the amount of the loan that exceeds 80% of the value of the property is guaranteed or insured by a government agency or private insurer approved by the Superintendent, and

        • (III) at the time the loan is made or acquired, the property provides an annual income sufficient to pay all annual expenses related to the property, including the payments owing under the mortgage and the mortgages having an equal or prior claim against the property, or

      • (C) the loan is one referred to in paragraph 469(2)(d),

    • (vi) a loan that

      • (A) consists of a deposit made by the company with another financial institution,

      • (B) is fully secured by a deposit with any financial institution, including the company,

      • (C) is fully secured by debt obligations guaranteed by any financial institution other than the company, or

      • (D) is fully secured by a guarantee of a financial institution other than the company,

    • (vii) an advance on the security of or against the cash surrender value of a policy, or

    • (viii) a loan to an entity controlled by the company;

  • (b) an investment in debt obligations, other than

    • (i) debt obligations that are

      • (A) guaranteed by any financial institution other than the company,

      • (B) fully secured by deposits with any financial institution, or

      • (C) fully secured by debt obligations that are guaranteed by any financial institution other than the company,

    • (ii) debt obligations issued by the Government of Canada, the government of a province, a municipality, or by any agency thereof, or by the government of a foreign country or any political subdivision thereof, or by any agency thereof, or by a prescribed international agency,

    • (iii) debt obligations that are guaranteed by, or fully secured by securities issued by, a government, a municipality or an agency referred to in subparagraph (ii),

    • (iv) debt obligations that are widely distributed, as that expression is defined by the regulations, or

    • (v) debt obligations of an entity controlled by the company; and

  • (c) an investment in shares of a body corporate or ownership interests in an unincorporated entity, other than

    • (i) shares or ownership interests that are widely distributed, as that expression is defined by the regulations,

    • (ii) shares or ownership interests of an entity controlled by the company, or

    • (iii) participating shares. (prêt commercial)

  factoring entity

  factoring entity means a factoring entity as defined in the regulations. (entité s’occupant d’affacturage)

  finance entity

  finance entity means a finance entity as defined in the regulations. (entité s’occupant de financement)

  financial leasing entity

  financial leasing entity means an entity

  • (a) the activities of which are limited to the financial leasing of personal property and such related activities as are prescribed and whose activities conform to such restrictions and limitations thereon as are prescribed; and

  • (b) that, in conducting the activities referred to in paragraph (a) in Canada, does not

    • (i) direct its customers or potential customers to particular dealers in the leased property or the property to be leased,

    • (ii) enter into lease agreements with persons in respect of any motor vehicle having a gross vehicle weight, as that expression is defined by the regulations, of less than twenty-one tonnes, or

    • (iii) enter into lease agreements with natural persons in respect of personal household property, as that expression is defined by the regulations. (entité s’occupant de crédit-bail)

  loan

  loan includes an acceptance, advance on the security of or against the cash surrender value of a policy, endorsement or other guarantee, a deposit, a financial lease, a conditional sales contract, a repurchase agreement and any other similar arrangement for obtaining funds or credit but does not include investments in securities. (prêt ou emprunt)

  motor vehicle

  motor vehicle means a motorized vehicle designed to be used primarily on a public highway for the transportation of persons or things, but does not include

  • (a) a fire-engine, bus, ambulance or utility truck; or

  • (b) any other special purpose motorized vehicle that contains significant special features that make it suitable for a specific purpose. (véhicule à moteur)

  mutual fund distribution entity

  mutual fund distribution entity means an entity whose principal activity is acting as a selling agent of units, shares or other interests in a mutual fund and acting as a collecting agent in the collection of payments for any such interests if

  • (a) the proceeds of the sales of any such interests, less any sales commissions and service fees, are paid to the mutual fund; and

  • (b) the existence of a sales commission and service fee in respect of the sale of any such interest is disclosed to the purchaser of the interest before the purchase of the interest. (courtier de fonds mutuels)

  mutual fund entity

  mutual fund entity means an entity

  • (a) whose activities are limited to the investing of the funds of the entity so as to provide investment diversification and professional investment management to the holders of its securities; and

  • (b) whose securities entitle their holders to receive, on demand, or within a specified period after demand, an amount computed by reference to the value of a proportionate interest in the whole or in a part of its net assets, including a separate fund or trust account of the entity. (entité s’occupant de fonds mutuels)

  participating share

  participating share means a share of a body corporate that carries the right to participate in the earnings of the body corporate to an unlimited degree and to participate in a distribution of the remaining property of the body corporate on dissolution. (action participante)

  permitted entity

  permitted entity means an entity in which a company is permitted to acquire a substantial investment under section 495. (entité admissible)

  prescribed subsidiary

  prescribed subsidiary means a subsidiary that is one of a prescribed class of subsidiaries. (filiale réglementaire)

  specialized financing entity

  specialized financing entity means a specialized financing entity as defined in the regulations. (entité s’occupant de financement spécial)

• Marginal note:Members of a company’s group

  (2) For the purpose of this Part, a member of a company’s group is any of the following:

  • (a) an entity referred to in any of paragraphs 495(1)(a) to (f) that controls the company;

  • (b) a subsidiary of the company or of an entity referred to in any of paragraphs 495(1)(a) to (f) that controls the company;

  • (c) an entity in which the company, or an entity referred to in any of paragraphs 495(1)(a) to (f) that controls the company, has a substantial investment; or

  • (d) a prescribed entity in relation to the company.

• Marginal note:Exclusion of assets and liabilities of segregated funds

  (3) A reference in this Part to the assets or liabilities of a company does not include

  • (a) assets of a segregated fund maintained pursuant to section 451; or

  • (b) liabilities of the company under the policies and for the amounts in respect of which such a fund is maintained.