30—Separate trust ledger accounts
(1) A collection agent
must ensure that the agent's trust ledger accounts are kept separately in
respect of each of the agent's clients.
(2) The agent must
record in each of the separate accounts the following details:
(a) the
name and address of the client to whom the accounts relate;
(b) a
brief description of the service provided and the transaction to which the
accounts relate;
(c) in
respect of each receipt or disbursement of trust money—
(i)
the date and reference number of the receipt or
disbursement;
(ii)
the name of the person from whom the money is received or
to whom the money is disbursed;
(iii)
brief particulars of the purpose of the receipt or
disbursement;
(iv)
the amount received or disbursed.
(3) The agent must
ensure that any changes in the details referred to in
subregulation (2)(a) or (b) are recorded in a manner that enables the
changes and the order in which they occurred to be identified.
(4) If the agent
transfers money between any of the separate accounts, the transfer must be
clearly recorded—
(a) in
both accounts; and
(b) in a
transfer journal,
in sufficient detail that the transfer may be clearly understood.
(5) The records of
receipts, disbursements and transfers must be made by the agent in accordance
with this regulation in the order in which the receipts, disbursements or
transfers are received or made, each such record being made within
2 working days after the receipt, disbursement or transfer in question.
(6)
Subregulation (5) does not apply in relation to receipts or payments by
way of electronic transfer of funds, a record of which must be made within
2 working days after the agent receives official confirmation that the
transfer has occurred.
(7) If a collection
agent uses a computer program to keep trust ledger accounts or a transfer
journal, the agent must ensure that—
(a) the
program is incapable of—
(i)
recording a transaction that would result in a debit
balance in a trust ledger account unless a separate contemporaneous record of
the transaction is also made so that, at any time, a hard copy may be produced
of all such transactions in chronological order; and
(ii)
deleting from its records the information relating to a
trust ledger account unless—
(A) the balance of the account is zero; and
(B) a hard copy of all of the information
required under these regulations relating to the account has been produced;
and
(iii)
changing existing information relating to a transaction
otherwise than by making a further entry showing a separate transaction to
effect the change; and
(b) the
program automatically inserts consecutive page numbers into any hard copy
report produced by use of the program; and
(c) the
program requires input in each field of a data entry screen intended to
receive information for the purposes of a trust ledger account or transfer
journal so that the entry contains all of the information required by this
regulation.
Maximum penalty: $2 500.
(8) If a collection
agent uses a computer program to keep trust ledger accounts or a transfer
journal, the agent must, within 2 working days of a request from the
Commissioner or the agent's auditor, produce hard copies of the trust ledger
accounts or transfer journal.
Maximum penalty: $2 500.