RECONSTITUTION OF THE ITALIAN INSURANCE CONSORTIUM FOR HAIL DAMAGES (Start of full phase investigation)
PRESS RELEASE
The Italian Competition Authority has initiated two proceedings against certain operators working in the hail insurance market, in order to investigate the existence of distortions on competition.
The first investigation deals with the activity of the Italian Insurance Consortium for Hail Damages (CIAG), which recently modified its charter and the internal regulation.
At present, CIAG represents about 75% of the market for insurance coverage of hail damages. The investigation, initiated also following a complaint filed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, is aimed at verifying whether CIAG's new configuration constitutes a restrictive agreement. CIAG's charter and internal regulation seem in fact to provide the carrying out among the consortium's associates of various activities designed to unify the commercial conduct of the companies associated, even through an intensive exchange of information.
At the same time, the Authority, also on the basis of a complaint filed by the Italian Association of Insurance Companies (ANIA), started a second investigation against certain provincial protective consortia and their national association (AS.NA.CO.DI.), with regard to their activity concerning the management of the hail insurance. The protective consortia, instituted in compliance with Section 14 and following of Law no. 364/70 on the National Solidarity Fund, obtain the public contribution to the hail insurance premium in order to redistribute it to the farmers associated.
The investigation must ascertain if such consortia really refuse to give the public contribution to the farmers who directly provide to stipulate insurance policies with companies different from those that are selected by the consortia themselves. Indeed, these behaviours could bring about distortions on competition, by limiting freedom of choice of the farmers and market access of the insurance companies.