Munich Re Group Annual Report 2006 (PDF, 1.8

Munich Re Group Annual Report 2006
Solvency II –
New challenges for insurers
Interview
Hubert Rodarie and Philipp Marie-Jeanne are
members of the Board of SMABTP. Hubert Rodarie
is responsible for finance and insurances of the
person. Philippe Marie-Jeanne’s responsibilities
include marketing and reinsurance. Claus Brinkmann
heads Munich Re’s Solvency Consulting
Project Group, which develops reinsurance and
service concepts for primary insurers in connection
with Solvency II.
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The European Commission’s objective
in introducing Solvency II is to
harmonise and modernise the European
insurance market. The project is
built on the “three-pillar approach”
also found in Basle II: minimum capital
requirements, internal and external
supervisory methods, and market
transparency. The requirements of
Solvency II present small and highly
specialised insurers in particular with
major problems. Philippe Marie-Jeanne
and Hubert Rodarie of insurer SMABTP,
the French market leader in coverage
for the building sector with a premium
volume of nearly €1.2bn in propertycasualty
insurance, talked to Claus
Brinkmann of Munich Re about the
implications of Solvency II and the
special situation of small and specialist
insurers.
Claus Brinkmann_ You are working
hard preparing for the forthcoming
supervisory regime under Solvency II.
What do you think the consequences
of Solvency II will be for the European
insurance market in general?
Philippe Marie-Jeanne_ For some
experts, Solvency II will lead to less
volatility of insurance pricing and better
protection of policyholders, owing
to more efficient use of capital, better
risk quantification and improved risk