B.C. regulator fines mortgage broker $66K over failure to share complete financial information
A B.C. mortgage broker has been ordered to pay nearly $66,000 to a provincial regulator for misconduct.
In a decision issued late last month and posted online last week, the BC Financial Services Authority imposed the penalty on mortgage broker John Hawkins Anderson. A previous decision finding that Anderson had committed conduct "prejudicial to the public interest" was issued in August.
The misconduct in question occurred in 2020 and involved four mortgage applications Anderson submitted that failed to disclose some of the financial liabilities of the prospective borrowers.
On two of the applications, he also failed to verify the accuracy of the borrowers' information.
Summarizing Anderson's offences in his decision on penalties, BCFSA hearing officer Andrew Pendray described the mortgage broker as telling investigators the information he omitted "didn't matter" and "wouldn't have affected anything, anyway."
"Mr. Anderson appears to have concluded that it was open to him to determine what financial liability he was required to provide to a prospective lender, and what financial liability information could be left out," Pendray's decision reads.
"That conclusion is not one that is conducive to the efficient operation of the mortgage marketplace, nor is it one that, if allowed to continue in the industry, will allow for the protection of the public as a whole. While it is true that there was not, in this case, any significant harm or financial loss to the public, the risk of such a loss occurring is, in my view, readily apparent if such an attitude on the part of a registrant were allowed to stand unchecked by the regulator."
The hearing officer concluded that Anderson's actions "created a significant risk of adverse outcomes" for both the mortgage applicants he represented – who may not have been able to afford their payments – and the mortgage lenders, who could have funded mortgages based on incorrect information.
"I find Mr. Anderson’s apparent views in this regard to be incorrect on their face, and to be contrary to the overarching goal of the mortgage regulatory system, that being the protection of the public," the decision reads. "In my view, it is clear that specific deterrence is required in order to ensure that Mr. Anderson’s views in this regard be put to rest."
To that end, Pendray determined that a fine "at the maximum end" of the BCFSA's scale would be appropriate. He ordered Anderson to pay a $50,000 penalty, which was the amount requested by investigators.
Pendray also ordered Anderson to pay for the cost of the investigation into his conduct, though the hearing officer did not grant investigators all of the costs they were seeking.
Though they had "substantial success," investigators did not prove all of the allegations they brought against Anderson, Pendray noted, adding that some of the expenses investigators had claimed were for matters that were not, ultimately, brought to a hearing.
Instead of the $18,137.05 in costs investigators were seeking, Pendray ordered Anderson to pay $15,987.05, bringing the total the broker must pay the BCFSA to $65,987.05.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Toronto eliminated from PWHL playoffs
Toronto has been eliminated from the PWHL playoffs.
Information commissioner faces $700K funding shortfall, says system is 'overwhelmed'
Canada's information commissioner says her office is facing a $700,000 funding shortfall that could impact its ability to investigate complaints about government transparency and accountability.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Backlash over NFL player Harrison Butker's commencement speech has reached a new level
The NFL is distancing itself from controversial comments by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker during a recent commencement address.
Dabney Coleman, actor who specialized in curmudgeons, dies at 92
Dabney Coleman, the mustachioed character actor who specialized in smarmy villains like the chauvinist boss in '9 to 5' and the nasty TV director in 'Tootsie,' has died. He was 92.
Craig Berube named as next head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Craig Berube as their new head coach.