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Anglo Starlite Insurance Company Limited (Anglo Starlite) was placed into provisional liquidation on May 7, 2009 by order of Madam Justice Kwan of the High Court, with Mr Peter Whalley and Mr Jan Blaauw of PricewaterhouseCoopers being appointed as joint and several Provisional Liquidators.
The appointment was made after an investigation into the affairs of Anglo Starlite conducted by the Joint Managers appointed by the Commissioner of Insurance on May 5, 2009 in accordance with the Insurance Companies Ordinance.
A spokesman for the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance said today (May 8), "Provisional liquidation allows for the possibility of introducing a Scheme of Arrangement, which may introduce a faster and more efficient mechanism for claims by affected policyholders."
"A provisional liquidation order does not result in automatic cancellation of existing policies with the company. All existing policies remain in effect and all the valid outstanding insurance claims will be processed accordingly. The Provisional Liquidators have preliminarily assessed that the statutory deposit of $200 million placed in trust with the Insurance Authority (IA), together with resources available in the Insolvency Fund managed by the Motor Insurers¡¦ Bureau (MIB) of about $2 billion, should be able to meet all valid outstanding insurance claims," the spokesman added.
The IA has been closely monitoring the solvency position of Anglo Starlite and discovered that some bank deposits receipts provided by the company could be forged.
Acting on a report filed by the IA, the Commercial Crime Bureau has taken four key employees of Anglo Starlite into custody on May 6, 2009 to assist in its investigation.
The spokesman said, "The IA has been working closely with the Joint Managers over the past few days in consultation with MIB and other interested parties to work out feasible solutions to protect policyholders.
"The material misstatements in the management account of Anglo Starlite, including bank deposits amounting to HK$189 million, would seriously impair its financial position and ability to settle debts when they fall due. The IA therefore decided to petition to the High Court for an order to place the company into provisional liquidation.
"A transition to insolvent administration is appropriate for Anglo Starlite at this stage so that it could continue to operate under the Companies Ordinance," the spokesman added.
"The Insolvency Fund managed by MIB and the Employees Compensation Insurer Insolvency Fund (the Statutory Funds) have both undertaken to accept and process relevant third-party insurance claims under the policies issued by Anglo Starlite."
The Provisional Liquidators will continue their telephone hotline to answer enquiries in relation to policyholders and other claimants (Tel: 2289 5011; Fax: 2890 8345). They will also be prepared to advise claimants on application to the Statutory Funds as appropriate.
The MIB has also established a hotline on 2866 9681 to assist claimants in understanding their rights in relation to third party motor bodily injury claims under the MIB fund.
"Going forward, we expect the Provisional Liquidators will work out a Scheme of Arrangement for the company to minimise any inconvenience to policyholders," the spokesman said.
Ends/Friday, May 8, 2009
Issued at HKT 13:47
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