Our Multinational Insurance Proposition

Our Multinational Insurance Proposition -
Making international programme business sustainable for the future

We recognise that our customers have changing needs. In line with these changing business needs in a multinational organisation we know that an understanding of the increasingly complicated and often changing legal and regulatory landscape in each country is crucial to delivering a transparent, compliant and sustainable
international programme which allows our customers to answer the question ‘Are we compliant?’ affirmatively.

Insurance programmes needs to be compliant and to take into account all of the following factors:

• Each country has its own rules and regulations:
  • Regulatory laws in countries must beadhered to
  • Licenses must be held unless a legal exemption applies
  • Mandatory coverage in Countries of Risk must be granted
• Risks (per contract/per line of business) must be:
  • identified, and
  • allocated to the country where the risk is situated
• Risk adequate premium must be apportioned per country of risk/contract/line of business
• Tax laws in any country must be checked and any taxes must be paid according to the relevant tax laws of the country

Many countries levy fiscal charges (premium taxes and parafiscal taxes, ‘Foreign Premium Tax’ (FPT)) on non-life insurance premiums. The rules governing FPT can vary from territory to territory and in some cases are contradictory, ambiguous or in conflict. Some examples of this are:

• Inconsistencies in the ‘location-of-risk’ rules (EU has specific rules, outside EU rules vary by territory)
• Responsibility for payment of taxes by insurer (direct or via fiscal representative), insured, or broker
• Fiscal representative requirements (where required, some territories have specific rules about who can be appointed)
• Admitted versus non-admitted risk (very few territories permit non-admitted risk): there is no common understanding of the penalties of writing non-admitted risk

Our proposition - Multinational Insurance Proposition

We have developed what we believe to be a unique range of solutions which comprise our Multinational Insurance Proposition. At the heart of this is our Multinational Insurance Application (MIA).

Our aim is to help our customers ensure future business sustainability by adhering to all aspects of out-of-territory compliance requirements including legal licensing and tax rules, and  delivering this compliance in a single view.

MIA includes three main modules:

1. Legal – providing up-to-date licensing information country-by-country
2. Tax and Administration – capturing and disbursing taxes
3. Tax Reporting

Essentially, we want to deliver the following benefits to our customers:

• To help them move from uncertainty to certainty
  • Delivering underwriting processes and structures that address the increasing complexity of international tax and licensing rules applicable to multinational insurance transactions
  • Handling claims in line with regulatory requirements and ensuring that settlements are not compromised
• Provide certification of taxes paid in each country
  • Delivering detailed system-generated reports, stating when and where taxes have been paid
  • Giving clarity over who is liable for tax
• Deliver an improved programme structure

For brokers, in addition to the above there are the following benefits:

• Mitigation of potential issues associated with arranging insurance structures for customers that may not be mindful of local licensing, premium and parafiscal tax laws
• Evidence that compliance and quality issues have been addressed
• Practical help with the workload associated with premium allocation
• Sustainable products
• Support for long-term business relationships

The Multinational Insurance Proposition reflects Zurich’s commitment to assessing and managing change in today’s complex and regulatory environment. Through innovative technology and a globally integrated underwriting platform, MIP brings certainty and transparency to brokers/agents and customers through a globally sustainable insurance solution.