This year, the insurance industry has faced serious issues. Recently, news emerged that a life insurance agent embezzled premiums from multiple clients, causing over 100 million baht in damages. This raises broad questions about how life insurance companies and regulatory bodies like the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) should handle such problems and, importantly, who is responsible if we experience this ourselves.
Regarding this question, Thairath Money had the opportunity to speak with Adisorn Pipatworapong, Deputy Secretary-General for Legal and Inspection at the OIC. He explained that if you are an insured person (customer) who has had your premiums embezzled, current legal principles state that
“The actions of agents under the company are the responsibility of the life insurance company.”
If there is clear evidence of premium payment transfers related to the insurance purchase, it can be resolved faster (this may not include cases involving gold or stock solicitation). However, if you encounter an agent embezzling premiums, there are three urgent steps to take:
1) Check your policy: Verify directly with the life insurance company whether the premium payments you sent reached the company and whether your policy is still in force.
2) Gather evidence: If you realize your money was embezzled, promptly collect proof of premium transfers made to the agent. Documents should clearly show the amount, details such as to whom the money was transferred, and receipts with legible information. This step is crucial because fraudulent agents might have you transfer money through third parties, which could delay the company's verification process (normally, issues should be resolved within 15 days).
3) Report to the company or the OIC immediately: Report promptly with all documents to the insurance company or contact the OIC to facilitate quick fact-finding and coordinated action. For embezzlement cases, insurance companies often take responsibility—for example, refunding premiums for first-year policies or restoring coverage for renewed policies where premiums were not remitted to the company.
Regarding the recent case, the OIC's investigation found that Janket Thapboon, a life insurance agent of Thai Life Insurance Public Company Limited (TLI) deceived clients into paying premiums in advance, promising a 15% premium discount or gold, but did not remit these premiums to the company. Initially, 12 victims were identified, with more expected to come forward.
The OIC sent a letter requesting Janket to clarify the facts, but he failed to appear for the meeting. Upon investigation, his behavior was determined to be insurance fraud. Consequently, the OIC revoked Janket Thapboon's life insurance agent license and will compile all facts to forward the case to the Economic Crime Suppression Division for prosecution.
Regarding Thai Life Insurance, on 11 December 2025, the company confirmed that after investigating Janket's conduct, they found evidence of fraud. They terminated his status as an insurance agent effective 3 October 2025 and immediately sent SMS notifications to insured persons under his care.
Additionally, the company filed criminal charges against Janket for embezzlement and other related offenses and will monitor the case's progress closely. For customers who filed complaints, the company will compensate those with proof of payment and other documents consistent with life insurance transactions, as the company is responsible for damages caused and can sue Janket for embezzlement.
This major 100-million-baht loss serves as an important warning: insured persons must be vigilant. After paying premiums, always verify your policy status and confirm that premiums have been submitted directly to the company. If anything seems wrong, act quickly!
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