APCIA applauds Congress for approving the USMCA

The American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) has applauded Congress for approving the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), a free trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada.

USMCA is a renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a trade deal that benefited insurers and consumers in the three countries. The latest agreement updates NAFTA in some important ways to reflect technological changes that have occurred since NAFTA was negotiated. It is expected to lead to the improvement of financial products and help make it possible for the under-insured population to gain access to the financial system.

Steve Simchak, vice president and chief international counsel at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) said: “APCIA applauds Congress for approving the USMCA. The USMCA will address modern technological barriers to insurance trade, making it easier for US insurers to conduct business and serve customers in Canada and Mexico. While retaining the core protections currently in place, the USMCA includes a new commitment to allow insurers to store and process data in the location that is best for their business and customers. This commitment will provide insurers an opportunity to further improve insurance products and better protect personal information from cyber-attacks. Allowing insurers to utilise their headquarters’ technology also will improve efficiencies that could reduce costs for consumers and allow insurers to expand consumer options in underinsured populations.

“In practice, Canada will have one year from entry into force of the agreement to remove its existing financial services data localization requirements."