The Court of Appeal has handed down its decision in ABN Amro Bank N.V. v Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc and others [2021] EWCA Civ 1789.  At first instance, the court had found that an “unusual” and “unprecedented” clause provided credit risk cover in an all risks marine cargo policy. Most of the decision … Read more

The FCA is concerned about the harm that may be caused to consumers and markets by the use of the appointed representatives (AR) regime. This is a model used by around 3,600 principals and 40,000 ARs across a wide range of financial services markets. To address some of its concerns, the FCA is consulting on … Read more

The FCA has published Consultation Paper 21/36 (CP 21/36) which includes proposed new rules and guidance setting out a Consumer Duty which it considers will “fundamentally shift the mindset of firms” and establish an appropriate level of care to consumers. The consultation is open until 15 February 2022 and the FCA expects to confirm any final rules by the … Read more

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) has featured heavily in speeches by our UK regulators in recent months. The FCA, PRA and Bank of England (the regulators) have now published a discussion paper (DP21/2) which aims to kick-start discussion on how the financial services sector, with the help of the regulators, can “accelerate the pace of meaningful change” … Read more

With three UK based InsurTech companies earning “unicorn” status in 2021, the UK InsurTech market has the potential to be one of the most dynamic in the world. However, investment and impactful innovations in the insurance sector have so far been primarily focussed on small business and personal lines, as well as improving the efficiency … Read more

On 28 June 2021, the European Commission adopted two decisions confirming the UK as an adequate jurisdiction for GDPR and Law Enforcement Directive purposes.  As the interim data transfer window under the Brexit Trade Agreement expired on 30 June, this was just in time to allow the uninterrupted free flow of personal data from the European Union to … Read more

The FCA has implemented a package of remedies to address problems identified in its market study looking at pricing practices in home and motor insurance markets.  “Price walking”, a practice which means that existing customers can pay considerably more at renewal of their policies than new customers for the equivalent cover, will be prohibited. Read more

A recent decision of the Court of Appeal has clarified the approach that English courts should take to retained EU law following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.  The case concerned the interpretation of an EU regulation which until 31 December 2020 (“IP completion day“) had direct effect in the UK but which now applies … Read more