Market Guide: Life Insurance and Pensions in Italy 2006

This report is most appropriate for companies looking for an overview of the life insurance and pensions markets in order to assess the level of market opportunity (using our market data and forecasts), regulatory barriers and opportunities, and level of competition in the market. For more detailed market data please refer to Datamonitor's European Life and Pensions Interactive Database 2006.

Report Highlights


The increasing proportion of premium income represented by non unit-linked policies reflects a growing preference among Italian investors for products that offer a guaranteed return. This is a reversal of the trend noted a decade ago. ISVAP Circular 573/D makes provisions for the verification of insurance companies' monitoring of the education of their intermediaries, and of fairness and fit and proper requirements of intermediaries as regards the distribution and advertising of life and non-life policies. It requires a standard report to be submitted to ISVAP annually. Between 2001 and 2005, premium income from direct sales has been steadily increasing, while the opposite has been true for sales through financial advisors. Financial advisors continue, however, to be an important channel for unit- and index-linked policies, for which there has been declining demand in recent years.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - MARKET HIGHLIGHTS 3
Market overview 3
Market forecasts 3
Market regulation 3
Competitive market structure 4
Market leaders 4
INTRODUCTION 10
What is this report about? 10
Who is the target reader? 10
How to use this report 10
CHAPTER 1 MARKET OVERVIEW 11
Introduction 11
Key findings 11
The Italian pensions market is negligible 12
The proportion of premium income attributed to individual and group policies has been constant over the past 5 years 14
Premium income from non unit-linked insurance recovered in 2005, following a decline the year before 16
Bonds consistently account for close to 70% of the investment assets of life and pensions insurance companies 18
CHAPTER 2 MARKET FORECASTS 20
Introduction 20
Key findings 20
Over the next 5 years, premium income is set to grow at a compound annual rate of 3.5% 20
CHAPTER 3 MARKET REGULATION 22
Introduction 22
Key findings 22
ISVAP regulates the Italian insurance sector 22
The Insurance Intermediary Directive creates a single passport for insurance intermediaries and enhances consumer choice 23
Insurance companies which belong to financial conglomerates face additional supervisory requirements 24
Recent legislation governs insurance sales and communication practices 24
New legislation has the potential to expand the market for occupational retirement provision 25
Anti-money laundering legislation implies an additional administrative burden for insurance companies and brokers 26
Insurance companies are subject to new rules on internal control procedures and risk management 26
Recent and upcoming laws will enhance consumer protection 27
CHAPTER 4 COMPETITIVE MARKET STRUCTURE 28
Introduction 28
Key findings 28
Italian life insurance companies and composites represent close to 85% of the life & pensions market, by number 29
The top 5 life insurers control 36% of the market, by premium income 30
Banks & post offices generate the single highest proportion of life & pensions premium income 32
CHAPTER 5 MARKET LEADERS 34
Introduction 34
Key findings 34
Intesa Vita is the life insurance market leader, based on premium income 34
Poste Vita trails the market leader in the life insurance sector 34
Eurizon Vita ranks third among life insurance companies 35
CreditRas Vita is the fourth highest ranked life insurer by premium income 35
INA Vita rounds out the top 5 life insurers 35
APPENDIX 36
Definitions 36
Capital redemption policy / bond 36
Composite insurer 36
Defined contribution pension scheme 36
Defined benefits pension scheme 36
Group policy 36
Individual pension scheme 36
Individual policy 36
Life assurance 37
Occupational pension scheme 37
Pension insurance policy 37
Premium income 37
Regular premium 37
Single premium 37
Technical provisions 38
Traditional insurance 38
Unit-linked insurance 38
Further reading 38
Interactive Databases 38
Reports and Briefs 38
Wealth, Investments & Protection writing team 39

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Table 1: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by product, EURm, 2001-2005 12
Table 2: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by product, in percentages, 2001-2005 13
Table 3: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by buyer, EURm, 2001-2005 14
Table 4: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by buyer, in percentages, 2001-2005 15
Table 5: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by investment risk, EURm, 2001-2005 16
Table 6: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by investment risk, in percentages 17
Table 7: Investment assets of life and pensions insurance companies, EURm, 2001-2005 19
Table 8: Investment assets of life and pensions insurance companies, in percentages, 2001-2005 19
Table 9: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by product, EURm, 2006-2010 21
Table 10: Life and pensions insurance premium income, segmented by product, in percentages, 2006-2010 21
Table 11: Number of life insurance and pensions providers, segmented by type, as at Dec 2005 29
Table 12: Top 5 life insurers by premium income, as at Dec 2005 31
Table 13: Life insurance premium income, segmented by distribution channel, EURm, Jan-Dec 2005 33


Figure 1: While pensions premiums account for less than 1% of the market, they have grown at treble the rate of insurance premiums in the last 5 years 12
Figure 2: Individual policies account for the majority of life and pensions premium income 14
Figure 3: Compound annual growth in premium income from non unit-linked insurance has outstripped growth in unit-linked premiums 16
Figure 4: The portfolio of investments of life and pensions insurance companies has remained largely consistent 18
Figure 5: Pensions will continue to account for a negligible proportion of premium income, growing at a compound rate of 2.2% p.a. 20
Figure 6: Italian life insurers account for 66% of the market, by number 29
Figure 7: Intesa Vita leads the Italian life insurance sector 30
Figure 8: Banks & post offices and insurance agencies account for roughly 80% of premium income 32

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