BIBA sends UK Government its wish list

Email Print

19 March 2012

The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) continues to lobby the UK government to expedite a review of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) after the mis-selling of credit insurance led to a 50-fold increase in broker levies to the scheme.

BIBA made the call in the broker group’s submission to the Chancellor ahead of the UK budget, with CEO Eric Galbraith describing the funding of the FSCS as “fundamentally flawed”, and says the review is needed “to ensure that general insurance brokers are not paying for the mistakes of others”.

BIBA is also lobbying for an end to “inappropriate, disproportionate and costly regulation which impacts both the general insurance broker and their customer” when broker regulation switches from the Financial Services Authority to the newly created Financial Conduct Authority next year.

Mr Galbraith says that the change of regulator offers an opportunity to “recognise the difference between banks, insurers, and general insurance brokers”.

BIBA also asked Government to freeze insurance premium tax at the current level of 6% to avoid “additional insurance costs for customers at a time when income and business margins are tight”.