We advise life and general insurers, service providers, brokers and other intermediaries on the application of FSMA, FSA rules and guidance, Lloyd's regulation and European regulation affecting the insurance market.
We have assisted a number of clients with major regulatory reviews in connection with the FSA regime for insurance sales. This has included advice on authorisation, conduct of business and client money issues and the development of standard form contracts and other documents. We regularly advise on what constitutes insurance business for the purposes of FSMA.
We also act for clients preparing responses to FSA enforcement action, ranging from formal or informal Requests for Information to full-blown investigations, possibly leading to disciplinary proceedings. We have also conducted proceedings before the Financial Services and Markets Tribunal.
In the wider context, our corporate governance team can help you keep on the right side of company legislation, while our competition specialists can advise on developing a programme to ensure competition law compliance and to prepare you in case of a regulatory investigation.
Recent examples of our work
These are some examples of recent matters in which we have been involved.
- Advising on the application of UK and EU rules on freedom of services/freedom of establishment in relation to the distribution of insurance products by a UK insurer through a Europe-wide retail distribution network
- Advising on the white-labelling of policy sales with the brand of a retailer, in compliance with ICOB and the FSA's Principles for Businesses
- Advising a US insurance group on structures which might be adopted to enter the UK market, including advising on what constitutes the carrying on of UK insurance business
- Advising an insurer on the circumstances in which the provision of "add on" products such as legal expenses cover underwritten by other insurers is permitted without offending the restriction to insurance business in the FSA Handbook
- Putting together a suite of contracts for a major insurance group for the distribution via IFAs of their mortgage/investment/life and general insurance products, including agreements with packagers, lenders and IFAs
- Advising plc clients charged by the FSA with breaches of the Listing Rules, and directors whom the FSA said were "knowingly concerned" in rule breaches