The way that EU regulations develop from proposals or green papers into directives some years later is far from transparent and can be very messy. Knowing how to represent the views of risk managers in the right place and at the right time is something that FERMA takes very seriously.

Florence Bindelle, Executive Manager

The measures put forward by the EU and its various institutions have an enormous and wide ranging impact on our working lives. Current projects FERMA is monitoring include natural catastrophes, environmental pollution, Solvency II and captives, broker remuneration and the Insurance Medication Directive II, co-insurance and data protection. We are also an official sponsor of the healthy workplaces campaign Working together for risk prevention coordinated by the European Agency for Health and Safety at Work (EU-OHSA).

These are projects which continue to develop, but have been underway for some time. Our aim now is to help our members understand better how EU institutions work. Next year, we’ll be announcing some new ideas, possibly in connection with the general assembly in June.

We ask for our members’ concerns about European matters, primarily through the monthly presidents’ call between FERMA President Jorge Luzzi, and the heads of the national associations. We are also steadily increasing our contacts with EU institutions to raise awareness of FERMA positions, and we join forces with other European associations with similar interests to increase the weight of our views.

We may not make the process of EU law making any tidier but it should be clearer, so the members will be empowered to get their views known where they count.