Britain’s divorce with the European Union will see 16 UK and Gibraltar insurance firms stop – if they haven’t already – writing Irish non-life and life risk.
That is according to Ireland’s finance minister Paschal Donohoe, who said these companies notified the Central Bank of Ireland that they either had ceased writing, were no longer authorised, or would cease writing Irish risk.
Donohoe added that these firms will rely on the temporary run-off regime for existing contracts.
“I am advised by the Central Bank that 84 UK and Gibraltar authorised firms wrote Irish non-life and life risk on a Freedom of Service (FoS) / Freedom of Establishment (FoE) basis in 2017,” noted the minister of finance in a recent parliamentary response. “The total gross written premium (GWP) in 2017 on an FoS and FoE basis was non-life: €1.9 billion; life: €3.6 billion.
“The Central Bank has received the Brexit plans for 82 of the 84 firms (98%) who operated here in 2017. In relation to the ability of these firms to continue to write Irish risk, should they wish to do so, the plans indicate that 66 firms will or have established an Irish or other EU entity, use fronting arrangements, or will apply to the Central Bank to establish a third country branch.”
Sixteen others, as highlighted above, are heading for the door. Data cited by Donohoe showed that they accounted for less than 1% of UK non-life 2017 GWP; 27% of UK life 2017 GWP; and 22% of Gibraltar non-life 2017 GWP.
