14 November 2007
Gender as a factor in the assessment of insurance risks
The Gender Directive specifies the circumstances in which insurance companies will be able to charge different premiums or offer different benefits to men and women for contracts after 21 December 2007. The Government consultation on implementing this provision closed on 3 September 2007.
The Government will amend the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 through Regulations to provide that data relevant to the use of sex as an actuarial factor must be compiled, published and regularly updated in accordance with guidance issued by the Treasury. The Treasury is today publishing guidance setting out how insurance companies should meet their obligations.
The Government intends to legislate through implementing Regulations, to be known as the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 (Amendment) Regulations 2007. The Regulations are expected to enter into force on 21 December 2007. The changes to the law referred to in this response and guidance note are therefore proposals only. The guidance may be updated to reflect any changes that may be made to the draft Regulations when they are enacted.
The documents below are available in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF). If you do not have Adobe Acrobat installed on your computer you can download the software free of charge from the Adobe website. For alternative ways to read PDF documents and further information on website accessibility visit the HM Treasury accessibility page.
Media links
- PDF file of Gender as a factor in the assessment of insurance risks (348KB)
- PDF file of The publication of data associated with the use of gender in the assessment of insurance risks: Government response to consultation (242KB)
External links
- Discrimination law review (DCLG website)