The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) has issued an order, based on a settlement agreement, against Gordon Kimberley Hinkson, a life insurance agent (licence no. 12128104) and the president of Ocean West Financial Group, and against the agency itself.

The order imposes administrative penalties and two years of licence conditions on each respondent. The decision was rendered on September 14, 2026.

Unlicensed sales and inaccurate statements to the regulator

Mr. Hinkson is Ocean West's designated agent and sole owner. The agency holds life insurance licence no. 36164M. Mr. Hinkson is licensed in several provinces, including British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

The two respondents admitted acting as agents without a licence. Mr. Hinkson did so in Ontario from January 30 to March 24, 2023. According to the notice of proposal, he solicited clients for an insurer and sold a life insurance policy with a face amount of $20 million. In the settlement, he admitted communicating with clients and insurers about insurance transactions and completing one life insurance transaction during that period. After FSRA asked him on February 9, 2023, to confirm that he would not do business until his licence was issued, he gave that confirmation, but he kept acting.

Ocean West's licence expired on March 8, 2023, despite four FSRA reminders between January and March 2023. Through Mr. Hinkson, Ocean West then continued to deal with clients on behalf of the insurer. Between March 9 and October 16, 2023, it sold five life insurance policies, three of which came into force. It received about $2,977,884 in commissions from the insurer and from another company.

On September 28, 2023, Ocean West applied to renew its licence. In that application, Mr. Hinkson falsely stated that neither he nor Ocean West had been subject to discipline and that they were not currently the subject of an investigation by a regulatory authority. After FSRA asked on October 12, 2023, whether Ocean West had operated without a licence, he replied on October 16 that he had recently settled two policies.

What the notice of proposal sought, and the prior history

The Director alleged that Mr. Hinkson repeatedly and intentionally provided inaccurate information to FSRA, omitted more than $1 million in commissions and failed to disclose a prior regulatory measure in the 2023 renewal application, despite a warning.

The Director proposed penalties of $50,000 against Mr. Hinkson for acting without a licence and $10,000 for providing false, misleading or incomplete information. He also proposed a $50,000 penalty against Ocean West. Finally, he proposed refusing to renew both licences, on the basis that the respondents were not suitable to hold one.

The Director also cited prior regulatory history. In 2016, Mr. Hinkson acted as an agent after his licence expired. In April 2023, he entered into an agreement with the Insurance Council of Saskatchewan over a failure to maintain required financial security and professional misconduct. Ocean West was also sanctioned in Saskatchewan that month. The Director cited these incidents as evidence of a pattern of non-compliance.

Penalties and two years of licence conditions under the settlement

Under the settlement, Mr. Hinkson receives a single global administrative penalty of $40,000 for all the contraventions, compared with the $60,000 in two penalties that the Director had proposed. Ocean West receives a $50,000 penalty.

Both licences are subject to conditions for two years from renewal. Mr. Hinkson must implement processes to monitor his licence status, continuing education and errors-and-omissions insurance, and submit quarterly compliance reports to Ocean West, with copies to the person overseeing the agency’s compliance. He must also respond promptly to FSRA requests and make full disclosures in future dealings with the regulator.

Ocean West's conditions are broader. The agency must monitor the licence status, continuing education and errors-and-omissions insurance of agents acting on its behalf, including Mr. Hinkson. It must also maintain compliance records, report compliance issues to the appropriate parties, correct deficiencies, update its policies and undergo annual compliance reviews covering both the agency and its agents. Ocean West must also respond promptly to FSRA requests and make full disclosures in future dealings with the regulator.

Ocean West must also be supervised by a senior licensed insurance agent acceptable to FSRA. The supervisor must have at least three years of experience, be employed by Ocean West's managing general agency and file quarterly written reports with FSRA. If the supervisor leaves, FSRA must be notified within five days.

If Ocean West fails to find a replacement within 15 days, it must cease all insurance agent activities until FSRA approves a new supervisor.