The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has disqualified former HIH Deputy Chairman Charles Abbott from being or acting as a director or senior manager of a general insurer.

The regulator also announced the disqualification of former HIH actuary Geoffrey Trahair from holding an appointment as an actuary of a general insurer or acting as a director or senior manager of a general insurer.

Mr Abbott and Mr Trahair were found deficient under the “fitness and propriety” requirements set out in APRA’s prudential standards under the Insurance Act 1973.

Mr Abbott was an alternate director at HIH from August 1995 to May 1997, a non-executive director from May 1997 to 2001 and Deputy Chairman from January 2001.

APRA found he had failed to properly perform his duties as a director and acted improperly and with misconduct in seeking payment of monies while knowing HIH was about to be placed into provisional liquidation.

Mr Trahair was employed at FAI as an actuary from February 1998 and as the National Workers’ Compensation Manager from September 1998 and later at HIH after its acquisition of FAI.

APRA found Mr Trahair was aware FAI was significantly under-reserved and participated in withholding data from FAI’s external actuaries, PricewaterhouseCoopers, which resulted in FAI’s liabilities at June and December 1998 being significantly understated.