requirements relating to and duties of Service companies
Requirements for Service Company
5.—(1) Only companies registered under the Companies Act (Cap.50) meeting the following requirements shall act as agents for any member of Lloyd’s under these Regulations:
(a)
the company must, unless the Authority otherwise permits, be a subsidiary of a managing agent at Lloyd’s;
(b)
the company must have a paid-up capital of not less than $300,000; and
(c)
the company must be registered with the administrator under regulation 6.
(2) In paragraph (1), “subsidiary”, in relation to a company, has the same meaning as in the Companies Act.
Registration of Service Company
6.—(1) Any company that wishes to act as an agent in Singapore for any member of Lloyd’s under these Regulations shall apply to be registered with the administrator.
(2) An application for registration under paragraph (1) shall be in such form and contain such particulars as the administrator may determine.
(3) Upon receiving an application under paragraph (1), the administrator shall —
(a)
notify the Authority in writing of the application and furnish the Authority with the particulars of the applicant set out in the Second Schedule and such other particulars as the Authority may require; and
(b)
register the applicant on the expiry of 30 days of the date of the notice to the Authority under sub-paragraph (a) unless the Authority objects to the registration before that date.
Officers of Service Company
7. A Service Company shall —
(a)
appoint as its chief executive officer an individual who shall —
(i)
be resident in Singapore;
(ii)
be approved by the Authority; and
(iii)
be directly responsible for the conduct of the Service Company; and
(b)
appoint in Singapore at least one underwriter who has at least 6 years’ (or any shorter period as the Authority may allow) experience in underwriting any specialised risk of a type set out in the First Schedule.
Premises of Service Company
8. A Service Company shall only conduct business at the registered office of the administrator or at such other premises as may be approved by the Authority.
New policies
9. A Service Company shall inform the Authority of any intention by it, on behalf of any member of Lloyd’s of which it is an agent under these Regulations, to introduce into Singapore policies insuring risks of a nature which have not been previously underwritten in the Singapore general insurance market.
Duty to respond to notices and legal processes
10. A Service Company shall be responsible for accepting and responding to notices and legal processes to members of Lloyd’s carrying on insurance business in Singapore of which the Service Company is an agent under these Regulations.
Establishment and maintenance of separate insurance funds
11.—(1) A Service Company shall, on behalf of each member of Lloyd’s of which it is an agent under these Regulations, establish and maintain in Singapore, in respect of each syndicate in relation to which it acts for that member, the following insurance funds in respect of policies issued by the member in the course of carrying on insurance business in Singapore:
(a)
an insurance fund for Singapore policies; and
(b)
an insurance fund for offshore policies.
(2) A Service Company shall pay all premium receipts received by it in respect of policies issued by any member of Lloyd’s in respect of which it is an agent under these Regulations into the respective insurance fund established under paragraph (1).
(3) The premium receipts of different members of Lloyd’s carrying on insurance business in Singapore through the same Service Company or different Service Companies may be placed or pooled in the same bank account or may be otherwise mixed together except that the assets of an insurance fund for Singapore policies must not be mixed with the assets of an insurance fund for offshore policies.
(4) The assets of the insurance funds established under paragraph (1) shall only be used to meet permitted trust outgoings.
(5) During any year, there shall remain in the respective insurance funds, assets not less in value than the amount of premiums received respectively for policies issued by the members of Lloyd’s as members of the syndicate concerned in the course of carrying on insurance business in Singapore under these Regulations in the same year, less the amount of permitted trust outgoings attributable to the respective policies paid during the year.
(6) After the end of each year, all or any assets of the insurance funds established under paragraph (1) may, subject to regulation 17, be transferred to such premiums trust funds outside Singapore as the Authority may permit.
(7) In this regulation, “permitted trust outgoings” means —
(a)
in relation to an insurance fund for Singapore policies, Permitted Singapore Policies Trust Outgoings, as defined in the Lloyd’s Asia (Singapore Policies) Instrument made by the Council of Lloyd’s; and
(b)
in relation to an insurance fund for offshore policies, Permitted Offshore Policies Trust Outgoings, as defined in the Lloyd’s Asia (Offshore Policies) Instrument made by the Council of Lloyd’s.
Registers maintained by Service Company
12. Every Service Company shall maintain —
(a)
a register of all Singapore policies; and
(b)
a register of all offshore policies,
issued on behalf of the members of Lloyd’s carrying on insurance business in Singapore under these Regulations in respect of which it is appointed as an agent.
Accounts and statements of Service Company
13. Every Service Company shall —
(a)
have the accounts of each syndicate for which it acts as a Service Company audited for each accounting period in accordance with section 36 of the Act as if the syndicate were a registered insurer, subject to such modifications or variations as may be agreed by the Authority; and
(b)
provide to the administrator such statements of account, and information about any matter related to its activities as agent for members of Lloyd’s under these Regulations, as the administrator may require.