Litigation in Continental Europe may affect European insurers

Attempts to adapt local legislation to European Union and international law are creating a challenging environment for insurers operating in the region, according to Guy Carpenter.

The broker recently published its semiannual report of the legislative developments it considers to have the biggest impact on insurers and reinsurers in continental Europe.

The cases include an Austrian court ruling on the admissibility of a third-party liability insurer paying indemnification to an insured, the Belgian Test-Achats judgment and its impact on gender equality in insurance coverage, and a case in Italy regarding the impact of the EU directive on environmental liability.

The report also noted the ongoing discussion in Norway regarding the way motor liability is regulated, and a Swedish court's clarification of occupational injury exclusion in product liability insurance.

David Lewin, managing director of Guy Carpenter, said: "The common theme underlying many of these developments is the continued adaptation of individual country legislation to the requirements of EU law.

"The path to enactment of EU directives is strewn with obstacles and involves conflicts with existing local legal provision and longstanding legal principles.

"We also found that the dominance of EU legislation does not prevent individual territories pursuing their own agendas to create new legal liabilities specific to their own jurisdictions.

"For example, the creation in Poland of new financial legal liability of public servants for violations of their legal duties towards the Polish State Treasury opens a new field of business for the casualty insurance market."

For the full Guy Carpenter report.