Treasury has published a document setting out the Government’s legislative approach and proposed draft regulations for implementing the ECJ judgment on gender neutrality in the pricing of insurance premiums and benefits. It follows the Commission’s guidelines in confirming that:
- the use of risk factors that correlate with gender should still be possible within the scope of the judgment and provided they are a true risk factor in their own right;
- gender can be used as an actuarial factor provided this does not result in individual differences in premiums and benefits;
- the use of data on gender for the purposes of reinsurance remains unaffected;
- considering a tacit renewal gives rise to a new contract, as English law does, is the safest approach to avoid legal challenge once the changes are effective in 21 December;
- group insurance schemes for employees may continue to use gender in pricing the policies; and
- an annuity purchased without the involvement of the employer but using funds held in a work-based pension scheme is subject to the ECJ judgment.
On this same topic, FSA has created this week a one-minute guide on the Gender Directive and how it has been affected by the ECJ ruling. (Source: Government Response to Ruling on Gender-Neutral Premiums and FSA One-minute Guide)
