ASIC exempts authorised representatives from notification requirements for sub-authorised employees

ASIC has issued a new legislative instrument, ASIC Corporations (Notification of Authorised Representatives) Instrument 2022/301 (dated 8 June 2022).

This legislative instrument exempts authorised representatives from being required to notify ASIC of the sub-authorisation of employees who provide a claims handling and settling service on their behalf, subject to certain conditions.

This instrument is intended to provide relief to brokers by reducing the administrative burden of notifying ASIC of large numbers of employees who provide claims handling and settling services on their behalf.

ASIC has noted that this relief does not limit the substantive obligations that authorised representatives and licensees still owe to their clients.

Clients with complaints over the claims handing and settling service provided, or the conduct of an authorised representative or its employees, still have access to the licensee’s internal dispute resolution process.

However, the new legislative instrument does mean that while clients can still use ASIC’s registers to verify an authorised representative, they will not be able to look up individual employees of the authorised representative.

Mark Radford Lawyers has prepared guidance on the operation of the instrument here.