Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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215. To ask the Minister for Finance when the Central Bank first became aware of issues at a company (details supplied) and the steps it took from that date to protect Irish consumers. [24613/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Enterprise Insurance Company plc (Enterprise) is a Gibraltar incorporated company subject to prudential supervision in Gibraltar by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (the GFSC). Enterprise was selling motor insurance in a number of European countries including Ireland on a freedom of services basis.

The Central Bank of Ireland has informed me of the following:

The Central Bank was notified by the GFSC on 22 July that it was taking steps, with the cooperation of Enterprise, to petition for the winding up of the Company. The GFSC took this action as Enterprise had told the GFSC that the company was insolvent and had not been able to secure additional funding.

The GFSC also notified the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), and the relevant financial services regulators and compensation schemes in France, Greece, Italy, Norway, Ireland and the UK, where Enterprise has written business.

The Supreme Court of Gibraltar appointed Mr. Frederick David John White of Grant Thornton (Gibraltar) Limited as Provisional Liquidator of Enterprise Insurance Company Plc on 25 July 2016.

The Central Bank has worked closely with the GFSC since 22 July to ensure that all Irish motor policyholders are identified and are communicated with directly.

The Central Bank issued a press statement on 22 July to alert consumers of the issue and to encourage them to arrange new insurance as soon as possible.  The Central Bank has updated this press statement as necessary.

The Central Bank has been in on-going contact with and has been onsite in Wrightway Underwriting Limited (Wrightway), the master general agent for Enterprise in Ireland, to ensure that Wrightway is acting in the best interest of the consumers.

On 27 July the Central Bank contacted the 323 insurance brokers who sold Enterprise products to consumers requiring them to immediately contact any policyholder who holds a current Enterprise motor insurance policy and inform them of the urgency to make alternative motor insurance arrangements. This urgency stems from the fact that any claim made by policyholders who hold active policies with Enterprise, may not be fully covered irrespective of the policy remaining in force. It is noted by the Central Bank that Wrightway has agreed to make an ex gratia payment equal to the value of the premiums from now until the end of the contract term, in respect of any policyholder who holds a current Enterprise motor insurance policy.

On 12 August the GFSC issued a warning to the public regarding the website "enterpriseinsuranceclaim.com". This website purports to offer assistance with claims against Enterprise Insurance Company Plc which is currently in provisional liquidation. The Central Bank has alerted the public to this warning via it website.

The website contains false and misleading information regarding the validity of Enterprise insurance policies and the position of policy holders while the company is in provisional liquidation. There are concerns about the legitimacy of the website and the purpose for which subscriber information will be used. The Central Bank has indicated that policyholders should not rely on statements contained on this website but should instead refer to information issued by the GFSC and the Provisional Liquidator.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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216. To ask the Minister for Finance if the Central Bank is currently in contact with regulators from any other countries regarding concerns the bank has concerning insurance companies operating here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24614/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Insurance companies authorised in a particular Member State are allowed conduct business in other Member States without being authorised there under the EU single market rules. This is done through 'passporting' which is the establishment of a branch or operation by way of freedom of services. Passporting is not applied for but notified. In such circumstances, EU insurance legislation puts the onus on domestic supervisors to supervise for prudential purposes this passporting business conducted in other Member States.

The Central Bank has indicated that supervisory authorities across the European Union cooperate and share relevant information to achieve the objectives of insurance supervision and, in particular, financial stability and adequate protection of policyholders and other stakeholders. The supervision of most insurance companies established in Ireland is conducted within European supervisory colleges where some decision-making is shared with the group supervisor and European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) as per Solvency II.

I am informed by the Central Bank of Ireland that earlier this year it asked the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission to review the Irish motor business of Gibraltar based firms and offered its assistance in that regard, drawing their attention to the Central Bank's Bodily Injury Thematic Review and the increasing cost of claims in Ireland. The Central Bank followed that letter with a visit to GFSC on 7 July 2016.

The Central Bank's Bodily Injury Thematic Review was published in November 2015.  It reviewed bodily injury claims and reserving data and assessed the extent to which the insurance industry's data reflected the upward trends in frequency and cost of claims up to the end of 2014.

The Central Bank also discussed the Bodily Injury Thematic Review with its peers at a European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority's Practitioners Day on 'Supervisory aspects of Motor Insurance' on 21 June 2016 and bilaterally with foreign supervisors of insurance firms having significant motor insurance business in Ireland.