For a sustainable "Open Insurance" legal framework
In February 2021, the European insurance regulator EIOPA published a discussion paper on "Open Insurance: Accessing and sharing insurance-related data” for consultation. The association welcomes the discussion paper as an important contribution to the Open Insurance debate.
A suitable legal framework for handling data is becoming increasingly important for the competitiveness of national economies.
In September 2020, the EU Commission published its "Strategy for Digital Finance in the EU". In it, the Commission announced "legislation for Open Finance" by mid-2022. The regulations are intended to create mechanisms for greater data sharing in the financial sector. According to initial statements by the EU Commission, these could be based on the access options to account data from the Second Payment Services Directive (PSD II). However, the exact form of the legal framework has not yet been determined.
In February 2021, EIOPA published a discussion paper "Open Insurance: Accessing and sharing insurance-related data" for consultation. The aim was to prepare and support the EU Commission's project for the insurance sector by examining key issues in advance and discussing them with interested stakeholders.
Focus on voluntary cooperation
The Association is fundamentally opposed to new data access obligations and in favour of promoting voluntary cooperation. Possible mandatory approaches would have far-reaching consequences and risks. Strict regulatory requirements could also inhibit innovation in the insurance industry. Existing voluntary data sharing and communication mechanisms in the industry are evidence that the goals of Open Insurance are achievable without mandatory data sharing.
Ensure a level playing field
In the face of new types of competitors and diverse business models and value chains in the data economy, it is essential to maintain a level playing field. This avoids market distortions and monopolisation tendencies (including competition with "BigTechs") and is therefore in the interest of customers. In this context, existing regulatory barriers should also be reviewed. For example, it would make sense to modernise Article 18 of Solvency II, as this currently results in excessive restrictions on the business activities permitted for insurers.
