POI Newsletter

4 March 2002

National associations and BIPAR launch "Partners of Intermediaries" (POI)

A project which will facilitate the insurance intermediaries to understand the realities of Europe.

On 1 March 2002, back-to-back with the BIPAR General Assembly held in Warsaw, BIPAR and its national associations from across Europe and the Mediterranean area set up a new European Federation, Partners of Intermediaries ("POI").

"This new federation is set up in order to help insurance intermediaries, members of our national associations, to understand the realities of the Single insurance intermediation market. The adoption of a European Directive, creating a Single market for insurance intermediation is imminent" said Gérard Lebègue , Chairman of BIPAR . "All national associations and BIPAR lobbied very hard over the last years for this Directive and now that it is about to be adopted, we have to take up our responsibility vis-à-vis our members and ensure that intermediaries will be able to work in this Single market" he added.

"It is our firm belief that by helping intermediaries in understanding the Single Market, we also offer a great service to the clients who will then have access to a wider choice of products available in the European market." Mr Victor Galceran , first Chairman of POI, commented.

The POI Federation is set up as a non-profit making association under Belgian jurisdiction (aisbl) and has an educational objective, which is :
  • to jointly study topics of general or specific interest relating to the insurance and financial services sector at European level, to establish an exchange of information between its members and associate members, and to develop and promote co-operation between its members at European level
In this respect, POI will develop tools which will facilitate the insurance intermediaries to understand the realities of Europe. We still have 2 years before the above-mentioned Directive comes into force and we want to use this time to create the tools which will help insurance intermediaries in their preparation for this Single market. These tools will be made available to the members of intermediaries' national associations (members of POI).

Mr Vilela , incoming Chairman of BIPAR said "As there are many parties involved in the insurance process we will invite all those who have a direct or indirect interest in the insurance intermediation or financial services distribution sector to join the federation POI (and to become a "Partner of Intermediaries"). As an associate member of POI, they will be invited to participate actively in the development of a central, electronic intelligence centre on all issues related to the European insurance and financial services Market." All members and associate members of POI will thus participate in the development of the educational tools by providing the information and documentation each of them has available and wants to share with the other members.", he added.

By involving all market parties in the European insurance and financial market in the project, the POI intelligence centre will -over time- include not only articles and manuals on legal, fiscal and regulatory aspects - developed by POI, BIPAR or its national associations - but also objective information on the markets and all parties operating in the European insurance market. Understanding the European insurance market from a practical perspective means also knowing about products available and companies working in other markets within Europe. The information must be adapted to the needs of the intermediaries' daily operations, both in terms of the way it will be presented and in terms of contents.

"As we believe that cross-border co-operation among intermediaries is a way to grasp the opportunities offered by the Single Market - and this, in particular, between now and the effective coming into force of the new Directive's rules, we will also offer the possibility to the members of POI to find each other. In this respect, an electronic Members Directory will be available for the members and associate members", Mr Ruzzi, POI's Secretary general commented.

POI, BIPAR and its national associations will cooperate closely to develop the project. BIPAR will continue to be our European Federation that defends our interests at European level with the various European institutions (Public Affairs). POI will become the body that will bring together all the documentation and convert it into practical and useful information for the intermediaries.

Thanks to the separate legal body (separate from BIPAR) POI will also ensure that other market parties can contribute to this exchange of information without having an influence on the political positioning and decision making of BIPAR on issues where intermediaries have different interests from the other market parties (such as insurers, loss adjusters, rating companies, financial institutions, and others).

It is expected that all national associations, members of BIPAR, and BIPAR itself, will join POI because it offers a cost efficient, extra added value to our work at national level and to BIPAR's work at European level. The fact that the Federation will be open to market parties other than intermediary associations, will also ensure that POI's activities, which are in the interest of the entire European insurance and financial services sector, will also be co-financed by all these parties who have an interest in the smooth functioning of the European insurance market (and as explained above- without having an impact on our political positioning- as a federation). We believe it is an honest deal to invite insurers and other market parties to join us in this project which is in the best interest of the European insurance consumer and also in the interest of the entire insurance and financial services industry.

The first POI tools are expected to be available around June/ July 2002 and we will keep you informed as soon as they are ready for use.

POI is an aisbl under construction.
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