Supervision over foreign undertakings

Insurance undertakings with head office in a EU country may conduct business in Italy on the basis of the authorization granted by the competent Authority of the home country, which is responsible for the monitoring of their stability.

The pursuit of insurance business in Italy is allowed either under the right of establishment (that is by setting up a permanent presence) or under the freedom to provide services.

IVASS follows the access of foreign undertakings on the Italian market, in close collaboration with the Authorities of the other countries, in order to avoid the access of unreliable operators, and controls their activity, supervising over the transparency and fairness of behaviours vis-à-vis Italian policyholders and third parties.

In the press releases section you can find the measures for the protection of consumers taken also in relation to foreign undertakings.

If you have taken out or are going to take out an insurance policy with a foreign undertaking and you wish to learn more about the type of supervision to which it is subject, remember that you can also consult the site of the competent Supervisory Authority. The list is available in the website of EIOPA, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, where you can also find a lot of information on the regulatory and supervisory standards in the European Union and on their evolution.

Finally, the following list gives you access to the press releases concerning the measures adopted by IVASS or by the Supervisory Authorities of the European Economic Area vis-à-vis foreign undertakings already licensed to carry on insurance business in Italy.

Keep in mind that in general, should an undertaking be in financial difficulties, each Authority publishes warnings or press releases, clearly visible on their website, containing information useful to users/consumers.

Last update

20 January 2017