Domestic

The launch of the Motor Transparency Code

As part of the Government’s Action Plan for Insurance Reform 2025-2029, the Minister of State at the Department of Finance published the voluntary Motor Insurance Transparency Code (MTC) on 2 March 2026. It was developed collaboratively by insurers, intermediaries, the Department of Finance and the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI).

The MTC is designed to improve trust, clarity and consumer understanding of how motor insurance premiums are calculated. It introduces a new premium summary statement at quotation and the renewal, an annual market overview statement, clear risk mitigation guidance for customers and enhanced transparency obligations including plain-language requirements, online glossaries and clearer communication for declined applications.

The aim is to align the MTC with the CBI’s revised Consumer Protection Code and will be implemented on a phased basis from March 2026, with a formal review taking place after 18 months. As part of the review, the CBI will provide a report to the Minister for Finance on its observations on insurer and intermediary adherence to the MTC and the effect the MTC is having in achieving its objectives.

The Central Bank of Ireland issues first quarterly insurance newsletter of 2026

The CBI has published its first quarterly insurance newsletter of 2026, covering a variety of topics, insights and updates for the (re)insurance sector. In particular, it sets out the CBI’s results of a recent survey on the use of artificial intelligence in the (re)insurance sector. The newsletter also provides the results of a thematic review of consideration of climate change risks in firms’ governance.

Regarding regulatory matters, the newsletter provides updates on the implementation of the Insurance Recovery and Resolution Directive (IRRD) and changes to the Solvency II regime. It touches on items such as Solvency II’s new Delegated Acts, revised supervisory review process and market/counterparty risk guidelines. On IRRD developments, it notes that the Department of Finance is advancing legislative transposition, supported by the CBI, while the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has issued initial draft technical standards and guidance, with ongoing engagement expected throughout 2026.

The Central Bank of Ireland publishes the private motor insurance mid-year 2025 premium and settled claims data releases

The CBI has published two reports on private motor insurance based on the National Claims Information Database (NCID). Since its inclusion in the NCID, the CBI has published two reports per year aimed at improving transparency within the private motor claims industry.

The report on premium data highlights trends in the industry, most notably that the average written premium per policy was higher than the previous year. By contrast, there were no changes in the proportion of comprehensive cover policies.

The data release on settled claims shows that the cost of settled claims is higher than it was pre-COVID, with overall claims costs remaining elevated and damage claims settlements remaining more prominent than personal injury claims. During the first half of 2025, the personal injuries guidelines were used to settle most claims and this has resulted in a reduction in the overall cost of handling claims in comparison to claims settled under the previous compensation framework.

European

EIOPA opens consultation process to collect feedback on regulatory reporting and disclosure requirements

On 13 March 2026, EIOPA launched a consultation seeking feedback on the current system for data collection and associated reporting and disclosure obligations in the European insurance and pensions sector. The amended Solvency II Directive tasks EIOPA with assessing options for an integrated data collection framework aimed at reducing duplication and inconsistencies in reporting, enhancing data standardisation/sharing and lower compliance costs for firms. These objectives build on EIOPA’s ongoing efforts to reduce administrative burdens for supervisors and undertakings.

The discussion paper outlines the current reporting landscape for insurers and institutions for occupational retirement provision (IORPs) and explores potential approaches to further harmonise and simplify reporting requirements across sectors. The consultation paper is open for feedback via an online survey until 10 June 2026.

EIOPA joins forces with EUSPA to improve risk management of extreme weather events

EIOPA has collaborated with the EU’s Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) on a White Paper which encourages the use of satellite earth observation (EO) data by insurers and regulators in their risk assessment practices to improve natural disaster preparedness. The White Paper investigates the use of data from Copernicus (the EO component of EUSPA) to predict the impact of a wide range of natural disasters, including wildfires, earthquakes, landslides, droughts, and windstorms. In particular, the White Paper highlights the benefits of using this data to assess potential losses arising from floods, which can be carried out in near-real-time.

EIOPA publishes its third biannual report on the application of the IDD

EIOPA published its third report on the application of the Insurance Distribution Directive (the IDD) on 30 March January 2026. Building on previous reports published in 2022 and 2024, EIOPA’s key findings include that:

• the number of registered insurance intermediaries continues to decrease, while cross-border activity driven by passporting has increased
• actions taken by certain national regulators has led to the improvement of the quality of advice given to customers (although EIOPA also identified several shortcomings in certain Member States, such as very long claims processing times)
• following the advent of AI, EIOPA acknowledges that there is scope to clarify regulatory treatment of digital channels and AI-based advice models used in an insurance distribution context
• sustainability disclosures and concepts continue to prove challenging for consumers to understand, and are inconsistently applied; this raises the question of whether the framework is effective proportionate and delivers better outcomes for consumers
• shortcomings exist in relation to conflicts of interest and renumeration disclosures, and that certain national regulators have advised that they will be taking further action to address this

EIOPA publishes monthly technical information for Solvency II

EIOPA published its monthly technical information on 4 March 2026 regarding the relevant risk-free interest rate term structures (RFR), with reference to the end of February 2026, for Solvency II purposes. (Re)insurance companies rely on the RFR to calculate technical provisions in compliance with their obligations. On the same date, as is usual, EIOPA also published technical information on the symmetric adjustment of the equity capital charge under Solvency II with reference to the end of February 2026.

On 30 March 2026, EIOPA also published the ultimate forward rate (UFR) for 2027. For the euro, the applicable UFR remains unchanged at 3.30%.

EIOPA submits its draft amendments to simply supervisory reporting and disclosure requirements under Solvency II

Following a consultation which ran from July-October 2025, EIOPA has submitted draft amended implementing technical standards (ITS), on (a) supervisory reporting and (b) public disclosure to the European Commission (the EC). The amended ITS have been crafted as part of the review of Solvency II and seek to reduce the reporting burden placed on (re)insurers. EIOPA notes that the amendments across the two sets of ITS reduce quarterly reporting templates by 26% for solo undertakings and annual reporting templates by 30%. The reduction in reporting templates for small and non-complex undertakings is even greater, being 36% quarterly and 44% annually. Assuming the EC endorses the revised ITS, each will take effect on 30 January 2027.

Date published: 23 April 2026

This publication provides an overview of certain legal and regulatory developments that may be of interest to certain entities. It does not purport to provide analysis of law or legal advice and is strictly for information purposes only.