C1Part II Regulation of Insurance Companies
Financial resources
35AF18 Adequacy of assets.
1
A UK company shall secure—
a
that its liabilities under contracts of insurance entered into by it, other than liabilities in respect of linked benefits, are covered by assets of appropriate safety, yield and marketability having regard to the classes of business carried on; and
b
without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a) above, that its investments are appropriately diversified and adequately spread and that excessive reliance is not placed on investments of any particular category or description.
2
A UK company which has entered into a linked long term contract shall secure that, as far as practicable, its liabilities under the contract in respect of linked benefits are covered as follows—
a
if those benefits are linked to the value of units in an undertaking for collective investments in transferable securities or to the value of assets contained in an internal fund, by those units or assets;
b
if those benefits are linked to a share index or other reference value not mentioned in paragraph (a) above, by units which represent that reference value, or by assets of appropriate safety and marketability which correspond, as nearly as may be, to the assets on which that reference value is based.
3
A UK company which has entered into a linked long term contract shall also secure that F19such of its liabilities under the contract in respect of linked benefits as are not covered by contracts of reinsurance are covered by assets of a description prescribed by regulations under section 78 below.
4
In this section—
'linked benefits’, in relation to a contract of insurance, means benefits payable to the policy holder which are determined by reference to the value of or the income from property of any description (whether or not specified in the contract) or by reference to fluctuations in, or in an index of, the value of property of any description (whether or not so specified);
'linked long term contract’ means F20(subject to subsection (5) below) a contract of insurance—
a
the effecting of which constitutes the carrying on of long term business; and
b
under which linked benefits are payable to the policy holder.
F215
In subsection (3) above 'linked long term contract’ does not include a contract the effecting of which constitutes the carrying on of long term business of class VII(a).
Financial resources
C232 Margins of solvency.
1
Every insurance company to which this Part of this Act applies—
a
whose head office is in the United Kingdom, or
b
whose business in the United Kingdom is restricted to reinsurance,
shall maintain a margin of solvency of such amount as may be prescribed by or determined in accordance with regulations made for the purposes of this section.
2
Subject to subsection (3) below, every insurance company to which this Part of this Act applies whose head office is not in a member State shall maintain—
a
a margin of solvency, and
b
a United Kingdom margin of solvency,
of such amounts as may be prescribed by or determined in accordance with regulations made for the purposes of this section.
3
Subsection (2) above shall not apply to an insurance company if its business in the United Kingdom is restricted to re-insurance F1or if it is a Swiss general insurance companyor if section 9(2) above applies to it; but an insurance company that has made a deposit in the United Kingdom in accordance with section 9(2)(b) above shall maintain—
a
a margin of solvency, and
b
a F2EEA margin of solvency,
of such amounts as may be prescribed by or determined in accordance with regulations made for the purposes of this section.
C34
An insurance company that fails to comply with subsection (1), (2) or (3) above—
a
b
c
shall give effect to any plan accepted by the F3Treasury as adequate.
C45
For the purposes of this Act—
a
the margin of solvency of an insurance company is the excess of the value of its assets over the amount of its liabilities, that value and amount being determined in accordance with any applicable valuation regulations;
b
the United Kingdom margin of solvency of an insurance company is its margin of solvency computed by reference to the assets and liabilities of the business carried on by the company in the United Kingdom;
6
In the case of an insurance company that carries on both long term and general business, subsections (1), (2) and (3) above shall have effect as if—
a
the requirements to maintain a margin of solvency, and
b
where the company carries on both kinds of business in the United Kingdom, the requirement to maintain a United Kingdom margin of solvency, and
c
where the company carries on both kinds of business F7in EEA States (taken together), the requirement to maintain a EEA margin of solvency,
were requirements to maintain separate margins in respect of the two kinds of business (and accordingly as if the references in subsection (5) to assets and liabilities were references to assets and liabilities relating to the kind of business in question).
F87
In applying subsection (5) above, the amount of the company’s liabilities shall be taken to be increased by the amount of any reserve maintained under section 34A below.
C533 Failure to maintain minimum margin.
C61
If—
a
the margin of solvency of an insurance company to which section 32(1) above applies, or
b
the margin of solvency or United Kingdom margin of solvency of an insurance company to which section 32(2) above applies, or
c
the margin of solvency or F9EEA margin of solvency of an insurance company to which section 32(3) above applies,
C62
3
Where a company is required by virtue of section 32(6) above to maintain separate margins in respect of long term and general business, subsection (1) above shall have effect as if any reference to the margin of solvency, the United Kingdom margin of solvency or the F9EEA margin of solvency of the company were a reference to the margin in respect of either of the two kinds of business.
34 Companies supervised in other member States.
1
An insurance company to which this Part of this Act applies—
F14a
whose head office is in an EEA State other than the United Kingdom, or
b
which has in accordance with section 9(2) above made a deposit in such a State, or
F15or
c
which is a Swiss general insurance company,
shall secure that the value of the assets of the business carried on by it in the United Kingdom does not fall below the amount of the liabilities of that business, that value and amount being determined in accordance with any applicable valuation regulations.
2
In the case of a company that carries on in the United Kingdom both long term and general business subsection (1) above shall have effect separately in relation to the assets and liabilities of the two kinds of business.
C735 Form and situation of assets.
1
Regulations may make provision for securing that, in such circumstances and to such extent as may be prescribed, the assets of an insurance company to which this Part of this Act applies are maintained in such places as may be prescribed and the nature of the assets is appropriate in relation to the currency in which the liabilities of the company are or may be required to be met.
2
Regulations made for the purposes specified in subsection (1) above shall not have effect in relation to the assets of F16an insurance company whose head office is in an EFTA StateF17or which is a Swiss general insurance companyso far as their value exceeds the amount of the liabilities of the business carried on by the company in the United Kingdom, that value and amount being determined in accordance with any applicable valuation regulations.
Financial resources
35A Adequacy of assets.
1
A UK company shall secure—
a
that its liabilities under contracts of insurance entered into by it, other than liabilities in respect of linked benefits, are covered by assets of appropriate safety, yield and marketability having regard to the classes of business carried on; and
b
without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a) above, that its investments are appropriately diversified and adequately spread and that excessive reliance is not placed on investments of any particular category or description.
2
A UK company which has entered into a linked long term contract shall secure that, as far as practicable, its liabilities under the contract in respect of linked benefits are covered as follows—
a
if those benefits are linked to the value of units in an undertaking for collective investments in transferable securities or to the value of assets contained in an internal fund, by those units or assets;
b
if those benefits are linked to a share index or other reference value not mentioned in paragraph (a) above, by units which represent that reference value, or by assets of appropriate safety and marketability which correspond, as nearly as may be, to the assets on which that reference value is based.
3
A UK company which has entered into a linked long term contract shall also secure that such of its liabilities under the contract in respect of linked benefits as are not covered by contracts of reinsurance are covered by assets of a description prescribed by regulations under section 78 below.
4
In this section—
'linked benefits’, in relation to a contract of insurance, means benefits payable to the policy holder which are determined by reference to the value of or the income from property of any description (whether or not specified in the contract) or by reference to fluctuations in, or in an index of, the value of property of any description (whether or not so specified);
'linked long term contract’ means (subject to subsection (5) below) a contract of insurance—
a
the effecting of which constitutes the carrying on of long term business; and
b
under which linked benefits are payable to the policy holder.
5
In subsection (3) above 'linked long term contract’ does not include a contract the effecting of which constitutes the carrying on of long term business of class VII(a).
Pt. II (ss. 15-71) restricted (1.1.1993) by S.I. 1992/3218, reg65
Pt. II (ss. 15-71) extended (24.12.1996) by S.I. 1996/3011, reg. 3(1)(b), 10(1)