EU Auditors to examine insurance-market watchdog

The European Court of Auditors¹ is conducting an audit of the EU’s insurance-market watchdog, EIOPA² (the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority). The auditors will focus on two key fields of EIOPA’s activities: supervision of the insurance market, in particular action taken to promote supervisory convergence; and the stress-test exercise under EIOPA’s objective to ensure financial stability.

EIOPA is one of three European Supervisory Authorities set up in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Its main goals are to ensure an effective and consistent level of regulation and supervision of the insurance and pensions markets across the EU; to protect consumers better; to fight systemic risk; to rebuild trust in the financial system; and to strengthen oversight of cross-border groups.

“The insurance market in the EU holds around 11 trillion euros in assets and in some EU countries insurers hold total assets amounting to much more than 100% of their respective GDPs. Effective supervision by EIOPA is of crucial importance to protect consumers’ interests and ensure their trust in the insurance market,” said Rimantas Šadžius, the Member of the European Court of Auditors responsible for the report.

The audit will include expert analysis in the area of stress-testing, as well as surveys aimed at national authorities and insurance companies, and visits to insurance associations and other stakeholders.

The EIOPA audit is a high priority task in the auditors’ 2018 Annual Work Programme and so the report is expected to be published before the end of 2018.

• 1. 

  As the EU's independent external auditor, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) looks after the interests of EU taxpayers. It does not have legal powers, but works to improve the European Commission's management of the EU budget and reports on EU finances.
  What does the ECA do?
   
• 2. 

  The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) is part of a European System of Financial Supervisors that comprises three European Supervisory Authorities, one for the banking sector, one for the securities sector and one for the insurance and occupational pensions sector, as well as the European Systemic Risk Board.