Broker fined, suspended on seven counts of negligence

A former Quebec damage insurance broker has pleaded guilty to seven counts of professional misconduct — including negligence, providing false information to insurers, and telling an uninsured client to faire attention (be careful/drive carefully) rather than explaining their legal obligation to carry civil liability coverage.

The Comité de discipline de la Chambre de l’assurance de dommages issued its ruling on May 22, 2026, against Sylvain Daigneault, formerly a broker in Terrebonne, Quebec (now retired). Daigneault entered a guilty plea to all seven counts at the outset of the March 26, 2026, hearing.

Told Client to Drive Carefully — Without Insurance

Perhaps the most striking count involves a client identified in the regulator’s decision as ‘DGL.’

According to the regulator’s decision, after Daigneault failed to execute instructions to insure the client’s Hyundai Genesis — leaving the vehicle without any coverage — his response during a subsequent phone call was to tell the client to “faire attention, car il n’est pas assuré” (be careful, because he is not insured), without once mentioning their legal obligation to carry civil liability insurance. The committee he violated the regulator’s Code of Ethics of Damage Insurance Representatives.

Cancelled the Wrong Policy

In a separate count involving client ‘PD,’ Daigneault was asked to cancel the insurance on a vehicle the client was selling — a Dodge Ram. Instead, he cancelled the policy on the client’s other vehicle, a Hyundai Santa Fe — the one the client was still actively driving. The error left the client without coverage for approximately five months, from around Mar. 17 to Aug. 7, 2023.

A Pattern Across Multiple Clients

Those were not isolated incidents. Across three separate counts, dating between 2022 and 2023, Daigneault’s failures were both varied and repetitive. He provided false information to Echelon Insurance, left multiple vehicles uninsured through administrative errors, failed to verify a client’s prior insurance history before placing new coverage with Intact Insurance, suggested a client submit fraudulent cancellation documents from the previous insurer, Pafco, and falsely confirmed a policy had been issued when it had not — leaving a client’s Nissan Leaf uninsured from approximately July 29 to Aug. 14, 2023.

Sanctions

The sanctions will only take effect should Daigneault’s certificate ever be reinstated — a largely procedural note, given that he committed to permanent retirement as of Mar. 27, 2026.

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The committee imposed the following sanctions, jointly recommended by both parties:

• Count 1: Four-month temporary suspension
• Counts 2, 3 and 7: Two-month temporary suspension each
• Count 5: 30-day temporary suspension
• Counts 4 and 6: $2,000 fines each

All suspension periods run concurrently for a total of four months. Daigneault is also responsible for all costs including publication of a suspension notice in a local newspaper.

The committee noted his guilty plea, absence of prior disciplinary history, genuine remorse, and zero risk of reoffending as mitigating factors. Aggravating factors included the objective gravity and repetitive nature of the offences across multiple clients, and the risk posed to public protection.