Vol. 564 No. 5
101 Mr. Carey asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if an insurance company can invoke, as a reason for not quoting, the fact that somebody is insured with another insurance company; the informal arrangements or obligations that apply in relation to the giving an insurance quotation to drivers of motor vehicles; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9541/03]
The pricing and underwriting of insurance is a matter for individual insurance companies and EU law prevents governments from intervening in the matter. However, I am informed by the insurance industry that the fact of a person being insured with another company is not in itself a valid reason for refusal to quote.
The industry indicates, however, that if risk proposed to the new company is outside of its acceptance parameters it may, under the terms of the Declined Cases Agreement, refer the proposer back to his or her holding insurer.
102 Mr. C. Lenihan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her views on the desirability of health insurance being regulated by her Department; if the difficulties of reporting and supervisory duplication have been discussed with insurers in view of the Government's desire to have more competition and also to have a single regulator in financial services including insurance; her plans to bring this about; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9634/03]
Any company proposing to write insurance business in Ireland, including health insurance, must have an authorisation either from my Department or from the authorising authority in another member state. If the insurance in question is regarded as substitutive health insurance, in that it may serve as a partial or complete alternative to the health cover provided by the statutory social security system, the insurance company is subject to specific provisions in the Health Insurance Acts and regulations 1994 to 2001. The EU non-life insurance directives provide that the Voluntary Health Insurance may operate in the market without an insurance licence.
