The Life sector and the Eurovita case were the protagonists at the annual meeting of Ania, the association of Italian insurance companies today after the "systemic" agreement which was found last Friday for the first rescue of an insurance company, with Allianz Italia, Generali Italia, Intesa Sanpaolo Vita, Poste Vita and UnipolSai in the front row.
According to the president Maria Bianca Farina, alongside these five major Italian companies in the life sector, engaged in the rescue of Eurovita, "others could be added in the continuation". The company's entire 'stew' operation "provides a clear signal of confidence to the market and policyholders and once again demonstrates the solidity, seriousness and great sense of responsibility of the important operators involved, as well as the culture of the industry itself insurance". Eurovita, recalls Farina, "was characterized by specific weaknesses".
Flour: the entire life sector is in a "difficult phase". The rules need to be reviewed
But it is not only the Eurovita case that is worrying, but thereentire life sector. “The life insurance sector is in one "difficult stage" Flour said. “In the first four months of the year, net funding was negative by 7 billion as a result of the drop in premiums and, above all, of a sharply increasing volume of outflows”. The rate hikes are pushing the surrenders of traditional policies strongly: "savers have started looking for higher yields". Farina therefore observes that "it is necessary to create the conditions for which Life insurance can continue to provide effective responses to the needs of Italians for security, stability and long-term investment". Ania offers one reform of the regulatory framework: "we need a system of guarantees that vary over time (...) but are firmly anchored to the trends in risk-free rates" i.e. those of government bonds. “The guiding star is that medium- and long-term insurance investments must be valued in Italy, as they are the most suitable for the needs of Italian families and the production system in general. It is the only one that can guarantee funding flows – even in less liquid securities – for small and medium-sized Italian enterprises”.
Signorini: "A market solution has been found for Eurovita"
The president of Ivass Luigi also intervened on the Eurovita case Federico Signorini, emphasizing that a market solution has been reached. “The measures that the Institute has taken have facilitated the identification of one market solution, protecting policyholders and maintaining system stability. The bodies of the procedure have carried out their task with professionalism and a spirit of initiative ”he said speaking at the ANIA assembly. “The distributing banks have realistically taken note of the complex situation and have acted accordingly, accepting some not insignificant sacrifices. We are grateful to the insurance companies and other banks who intervened constructively, giving a signal as we asked, and acting in the awareness of their own interests and those of their shareholders, understood well, with a wise look towards the future"
“Taking into account the technical time necessary for the transfer of the policies to a new entity – he added – we have extended the freeze on purchases applied to Eurovita until 31 October. Now we count on the interested parties, having reached the agreement, to proceed expeditiously with its implementation, in order to normalize the management of insurance relationships in the shortest possible time and respond to the expectations of the policyholders”.
Insurance companies in 2022 confirmed their solidity
In general, however, in a particularly complex 2022, insurance companies have confirmed their solidity. The solvency ratios have remained practically stable at absolutely safe levels, two and a half times the legal minimums, in line with the European average”, underlined President Ania. The annual meeting of the Anie was an opportunity to take stock of the most important issues for insurance and for the overall economic system.
We need to speed up protection against catastrophic risks
With a rapidly changing climate and with the repetition of natural disasters “there is no time to lose”, says the president of ANIA and the path to take to protect against catastrophic risks in an under-insured country such as Italy is indicated. Ania lifts the veil on the estimates of insurance protection from natural disaster risks of Italian companies: out of 4,3 million micro-enterprises (those with up to 9 employees) only 5% have a policy that covers natural and climatic risks. The percentage rises to 55% for small businesses and 78% for large ones. "An 'ex ante' public-private system must be defined which is based on the mutualisation of risks and guarantees rigorous attention to prevention, transparency in procedures, appropriate methods of financing the management of post-event emergencies and, above all, certain and reasonable times for compensation ”.
Urso: with the catastrophe bill disbursed immediately 30% of the value of the damage
On the topic of natural disasters, the minister of enterprises and made in Italy Adolfo Urso, he recalled the Ddl catastrophes with which the Government intends to encourage companies to take out policies against the risk of natural disasters. The bill signed by the minister for civil protection Nello Musumeci in which "with Giorgetti we have inserted a rule concerning insurance". Basically, he explains, we want to "make it certain for those who insure themselves against catastrophic risks that they will then obtain reimbursements in a reasonable time, i.e. immediately" in the event, for example, of damage from floods. A measure that is important for small businesses. Urso explains that the law provides that 30% must be disbursed immediately by the company "also serves to encourage those who have never done so to insure themselves against these risks". There will be discussions with your association and in fact "we guarantee to anyone who makes sure, family and businesses, that in the event of damage there is an immediate response with advance resources for at least 30% so as to allow them to immediately recover their company and to contribute to the economic recovery of the area without waiting for public resources which will then be there as in the case of Emilia Romagna”.
Motor liability premiums down further in 2022, but, "we are entering a new phase"
I press Rc auto in 2022 they marked a further decline, but, thanks to the effects of inflation, "however, we must be aware that we are entering into a new phase” Farina said again. “In twelve years, the price gap with respect to the European average has drastically reduced, from 213 euros in the period 2008-2012 to 40 euros in 2022, as well as that between the different areas of the national territory” underlined Farina. In his opinion “these were extremely positive developments, from which all policyholders benefited”. However we are facing a new phase: "already in the year that has just ended, companies operating in the sector for 100 euro prizes collected they paid 108 of them for compensation for damages and for the support of expenses". And for this reason, he added, "increases in the frequency and average cost of claims led to an increase in the average premium paid by policyholders in the first quarter of this year, an increase which was however very limited compared to the inflation trend" . According to Farina, "however, the reversal of the long-term trend clearly highlights the need for organic reforms of the system that make it sustainable in the long term". Among these he mentions the change in the taxation on premiums, which is highly penalizing in comparison with other European countries, the revision "which can no longer be postponed to ensure the fairness and inclusiveness of the rules", the unambiguous definition of compensation for injury serious to the person, "who seems to be finally on the finishing straight".
Pnrr: It's not a magic wand
Farina then broadens his gaze also to the theme of Pnrr: making good use of the resources offered by the Plan is essential “to keep pace with our partners, to create the conditions for growth for the future. The Pnrr is neither the Magic wand of Italy, nor the swamp in which we will sink”. Instead, it is "a path to be taken together, the structure of which correctly identifies the priorities: the environment, energy security, the right to health, the right to education from early childhood, gender equality, technological transformation and digital, the development of infrastructures, especially in the South”. Furthermore, according to Farina, “the interests of European countries are objectively convergent. We need to work together, faced with the challenge of American industrial policy or China's technological and commercial aggressiveness. This is not the time to split up, but to open new and promising building sites such as that of a more integrated capital market in Europe, as well as that of innovation to be governed and regulated”.
Mattarella: "insurance is essential for financial stability"
The President of the Republic also sent a message to the assembly of the association, Sergio Mattarella, in which he pointed out that “the insurance protection plays a crucial role in the country's socio-economic landscape, generating individual and collective benefits that contribute to social cohesion and risk mitigation,” he said. “In the interaction based on the principle of subsidiarity between public and private to satisfy needs such as supplementary pensions, supplementary healthcare, protection from risks for citizens, it is important to always affirm the criteria of the general purpose. Risk reduction is an essential factor for generating societies in which the protection of constitutionally guaranteed rights is concrete. Insurance companies are also an essential element, as long-term investors, for the financial stability, helping to support crucial sectors for the country's growth”.
