Irish data pool in new EC probe

A data pool run by Irish insurance association Insurance Ireland could be in breach of Europe’s competition laws, said the European Commission (EC), as it steps up an investigation that started in July 2017. The EC said this week that if non-member companies are excluded from accessing the data pool, it could in turn affect their position in the Irish insurance motor market and pricing. The formal antitrust probe will focus on the data-pooling system Insurance Link, which gathers claims data from member companies for the use of its members. Insurance Ireland said the system helps insurers to detect fraud. The EC said it recognises that the data pool can contribute positively to competition. But it is worried about “conditions” placed on companies that wish to access the InsuranceLink database, which may put them at a disadvantage in the Irish insurance motor market against insurers that already have access to the database. Insurance Ireland said the data pool is in line with EC law. Speaking to Irish radio station RTÉ Radio 1, CEO of Insurance Ireland Kevin Thompson said domestic and foreign insurers could have access to the pool without restrictions, other than a verification process. “InsuranceLink is open to both Insurance Ireland members [and] non-members, and a lot of those non-members aren’t actually insurance companies,” he said. Mr Thompson added: “InsuranceLink contains claims information and it’s quite sensitive information in respect of that, and we have a verification process [that] is the same verification process whether you’re a domestic Irish insurer, whether you’re a foreign insurer or whether you’re an entity [that] pays out claims [and] wishes to access InsuranceLink.” Insurance Ireland said it is cooperating with the investigation into the database, which has been running for 30 years, and is confident its practices comply with EC law. “Insurance Ireland understands that the investigation is focused on the InsuranceLink database, which is a secure database that holds claims information as a tool to assist in fraud detection. InsuranceLink is accessed by Insurance Ireland members and non-members and has been in operation since 1988,” the association said in a published response. Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of EC competition policy, said: “Insurance is essential for all car drivers in Europe. We are investigating whether companies wishing to offer their services on the Irish motor insurance market may have been unfairly prevented from accessing a data pool managed by Insurance Ireland for its member companies. This could potentially reduce Irish drivers' choice of motor insurance policies at competitive prices.” The EC said it will review its own guidelines on cooperation agreements, which provide principles on competitive assessment of information exchanges within the same market, to ensure the guidance is solid in its advice to cooperation agreements between market operators.

Irish data pool in new EC probe

Want to read this article?

Read Next

Insurtech partners with USAID on climate adaptation programme

ICEYE in data collaboration with Juniper Re on flood and wildfire

Senior appointments in Lockton’s crisis management team

European rates up overall but financial and cyber lines falling: Marsh

European Parliament approves regulation to tackle forced labour

Insurtech partners with USAID on climate adaptation programme

ICEYE in data collaboration with Juniper Re on flood and wildfire

Senior appointments in Lockton’s crisis management team

European rates up overall but financial and cyber lines falling: Marsh

European Parliament approves regulation to tackle forced labour

Want to read this article?

Read Next

Insurtech partners with USAID on climate adaptation programme

ICEYE in data collaboration with Juniper Re on flood and wildfire

Senior appointments in Lockton’s crisis management team

European rates up overall but financial and cyber lines falling: Marsh

European Parliament approves regulation to tackle forced labour

Related Articles