Progress on EU/US bilateral agreement on insurance negotiations

Insurance Europe says it is encouraged by progress made in the recent round of negotiations between the EU and the US on a bilateral agreement on (re)insurance. Insurance Europe reaffirmed its strong support for a swift conclusion to the negotiations in the coming days, and said the agreement should lead to a national uniform treatment of all European (re)insurers placing business in the US.

“The current US statutory collateral requirements are highly discriminatory and place European cross-border (re)insurers at a significant competitive disadvantage when writing risks in the US. A bilateral agreement between the EU and the US should therefore seek the total elimination of statutory collateral requirements in all US states, and should apply to both in-force and new business,” said Cristina Mihai, head of international affairs and investments at Insurance Europe.

“A positive conclusion would also represent a strong signal of the longstanding relationship between the EU and the US, and would help support the bilateral trade in (re)insurance, for the benefit of both consumers and our economies,” she explained.