FRENCH & GERMAN INSURERS FIRE JOINT SALVO AT EIOPA CAPITAL PROPOSALS

The French and German insurance associations issued a joint statement on Friday warning that the latest Solvency II capital rules proposals from the European Insurance & Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) will not do enough to smooth out insurers' solvency ratios. The Fédération Française des Sociétés d'Assurances (FFSA) and the Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV) said that there were some positives from EIOPA's report (IIN 24, June 17 2013) but that it failed to address some major concerns – particularly the way in which Solvency II could lead to volatility in insurers' solvency ratios. "A suitable solution is definitely needed in order to allow insurers to keep providing long term coverage and guarantees and contribute to financing the economy", the joint statement read. They also disagreed with EIOPA's proposals on the yield curve to calculate insurers' future liabilities. FFSA and GDV want "one clearly defined model" on long-term guarantee business to be a part of the Directive covering Solvency II, rather than – as EIOPA is proposing – requiring insurers to calculate and compare a set of models.