EU insurance policies need to remain in place post Brexit: Lloyd’s CEO

Existing EU insurance policies should stay in place after Britain leaves the bloc because the process of dividing them into British and EU contracts would be too complex, Lloyd's CEO Inga Beale told Reuters in a June 26 interview.

Life insurance contracts such as pensions can last for decades and transferring contracts to a different part of an insurance business or a different insurer would be time-consuming and unwieldy, Beale reportedly said.

"There's no way we could get it done by the time (of Brexit), even if we started now," Beale said.

"I don't think there would be enough lawyers to do it all, and certainly not enough capacity in the courts."

Britain and the EU started talks on Brexit last week, with Britain due to leave the bloc in March 2019.

British finance minister Philip Hammond called last week for transitional arrangements to ease the Brexit process after that date. But Beale said transitional arrangements alone would not be enough for insurance contracts, where policyholders can also pursue claims years after a policy is taken out.

"It's a big ask but we would like that all of these existing liabilities and contracts don't have to be transferred ... they can be grandfathered."
Grandfathering would mean that after Brexit, the rights and obligations afforded under financial contracts that were agreed before departure would not automatically expire.

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