In an open letter to European Commissioner Michel Barnier dated 29 March 2011, leading organisations within the European insurance and reinsurance industry have expressed concern with the development of the Solvency II process.
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European Union
EU: ECJ Gender Ruling to Increase Costs of Insurance
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in European Union, Industry Developments
In Association belge des Consommateurs Test-Achats ASBL v Conseil des ministres [2001] C-236/09 the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that taking the gender of an insured individual into account as a risk factor in setting premiums for insurance contracts constituted discrimination and was in breach of EU rules on equality. …
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EU: Omnibus II Directive Proposal Published
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
On 19 January 2011, the European Commission (EC) published the Omnibus II Directive proposal. The proposed Directive makes changes to the Solvency II Directive and the Prospectus Directive. …
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Guernsey Will Not Seek Solvency II Equivalence
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
On 25 January 2011, Guernsey’s Financial Services Commission (the GFSC) announced that it had no plans to seek equivalence under Europe’s Solvency II regime. …
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European Court of Human Rights Raises Serious Doubts as to the Recoverability of Success Fees under CFAs
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in European Union, Industry Developments
MGN Limited v the United Kingdom (Application no. 39401/04) 18 January 2011 European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), concerned an alleged breach of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention) in relation to the reimbursement of a “success fee” payable under a Conditional Fee Arrangement (CFA). Under Article 10 of the Convention, everyone has the right to freedom of expression without interference. …
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EU: European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) Launched
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in European Union, Regulatory
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) held its first meeting on 10 January 2010 and promptly elected its management board and selected Gabriel Bernardino as its first Chairperson. See our previous blog on the new European supervisory bodies here. …
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UK: EU Plans for VAT Exemption Reforms are Set to Continue
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in European Union, Regulatory
Following a meeting of the Council of the European Union on 17 November 2010, plans to reform the VAT exemption for insurance and the wider financial services industry are set to continue, with Member States agreeing to find a resolution to the current problems. …
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EU: Consultation on the Review of the Insurance Mediation Directive
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in European Union, Regulatory
On 26 November 2010, the European Commission opened a consultation period on the review of the Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD) in order to allow stakeholders to provide comments and opinion on the current IMD provisions and the possible policy changes that could be made in the future. The European Commission invites stakeholders to answer the questions put forward in the consultation document, which are aimed at receiving insight on the current provisions and possible policy changes. …
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EU: Consultation on Solvency II Level 2 Implementing Measures Launched
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
The European Commission (Commission) launched a consultation on 24 November 2010 to obtain input on the impacts, costs and benefits to support the policy decision making-process for the Solvency II level 2 implementing measures (the Consultation). Views on the impact of policy decisions on pricing, design and availability of insurance products are also being sought. …
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International Association of Insurance Supervisors issues paper on the role of participants in MicroInsurance
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) has produced a joint issues paper with the MicroInsurance Network regarding the role of mutuals, cooperatives and community-based organisations (MCCOs) in insurance markets. …
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