| Author (Person) | Chapman, Peter |
|---|---|
| Series Title | European Voice |
| Series Details | Vol.10, No.14, 22.4.04 |
| Publication Date | 22/04/2004 |
| Content Type | News |
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By Peter Chapman Date: 22/04/04 EU INSURERS edged closer to a let-off from a tough new directive that plans to ban them from taking gender into account when they set the premiums, terms and conditions of insurance policies. European Voice understands that ten member states from the EU's soon-to-be 25 countries have indicated an initial willingness to water-down this part of a law designed to stop sex discrimination in the supply of goods and services. The UK, Portugal, Luxembourg, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Greece and Finland rallied behind proposals tabled by Italy and Austria that, if adopted, would allow insurers to continue using customers' gender in calculating premiums. "The [compromise] texts would allow insurance companies to differentiate on the basis of gender where it was objective and relevant, and reflects differences in the underlying risk," a source told this paper. Industry experts say gender does make a difference because women and men have different risk profiles. The insurance move came at a meeting of social policy officials on 19-20 April. Experts said the issue would be discussed at another meeting on 4 May. Ministers are only expected to discuss the contents of the law - drafted by ex-employment and social affairs commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou - at their 1 June meeting. However the apparent level of opposition to the part of the proposals concerning insurance will be difficult to reverse. Under EU rules, the directive needs unanimous backing of governments to be approved. EU insurance firms have waged a fierce lobbying campaign to try and reverse what they see as blatant interference in the way they sell their product. Companies point to statistics purporting to show that risk profiles of men and women are naturally different. They say these risks ought to be factored into the price of cover, or the payout received when a policy matures. Failing to take these differences into account will skew the market, they claim. Ironically, they say women would be big losers in the drive for equality, in some areas. For example, young female drivers have fewer crashes than men and so pay a quarter less for their car insurance. Term insurance - that covers the risk of death during a set period, for example during the term of a mortgage - is also cheaper for women, reflecting the smaller likelihood of death. The industry failed to win around a majority of MEPs to their cause when the assembly was consulted on the law. But firms were encouraged that around 40% of deputies, who have no formal say over the law, took on board their concerns. The Parliament traditionally takes a tough line on discrimination issues. |
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| Source Link | http://www.european-voice.com/ |
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| Subject Categories | Business and Industry, Internal Markets |
