Solvency II may drive up product premiums - LV=

An "unintended consequence" of the EU Directive, which comes into force in 2012, will be the switch from taxing insurance companies on an income minus expense (I-E) basis, to taxing them on a profits basis. The move, which will mean diversified companies will no longer be able to offset their costs against their investment arm, will in effect make insurance products more expensive, Mark Jones says. "On the one hand, this little-known change will create a level playing field among insurers as some companies do not have an arm where they generate a lot of income through investments, mea...