Enforcement

Demerit point(s) will be issued to the accredited agency and accredited agent depending on the severity of the breach. A warning (reprimand) is issued if an agent of an accredited agency breaches the code of conduct or engages in unprofessional practice. Suspension of the agent will only be imposed if the defaulting agent has been given three previous warnings. Defaulting accredited agents will have the accreditation status suspended for 3 months until the deficiencies have been rectified. An agent who has been suspended twice will be expelled and may appeal to the Accreditation Board whose decision shall be final. An agent may apply to rejoin the accreditation scheme after 1 year of expulsion. An agent who has been expelled twice will not be considered for the accreditation scheme. No counsel will be allowed to be present at the closed-door hearing.

An accredited agency that has accumulated the stipulated demerit points within a period of 24 months will be suspended for 3 months. Accredited agencies which have been suspended twice during the 24-month period will be expelled. These expelled accredited agencies may appeal to the Accreditation Board whose decision is final. The accredited agency may apply to rejoin the accreditation scheme after 1 year of expulsion. The Accreditation Board will consider the merit of each application taking into account the circumstances of which the accredited agency was expelled.

Accredited agencies which have been expelled twice will not be considered for the scheme.

The allocation and accumulation of demerit point(s) are elaborated below:

Demerit point(s) issued to director(s)/partner(s)/associate(s)/agent(s) based on different categories of offences are:

The penalty based on the demerit points accumulated is as follows:

Penalty for accredited agencies based on the demerit points accumulated by their directors, partners, associates, agents or employees.

Total demerit points (for reprimand, suspension and expulsion of agents within firm) based on firm’s size and on a 24-month renewal basis:

Despite the above, in very severe and extreme cases, the Accreditation Board - on the recommendation of the Disciplinary Board - may suspend or expel an agency or agent at the first instance.