ABSTRACT
The Insurance Directives apply to contracts of insurance covering risks situated in an EEA State. But unfortunately, in several significant respects, the precise scope of the Insurance Directives and the overlap between the various regimes is unclear. In particular, it is unclear which regime applies where the risk is situated in an EEA State but the insurer is established outside the EEA. The basic premise on which the above argument was built, that is, that the first directive applies only to insurers established within the EU, is questionable. The position under the Regulations is, on the face of it, very different. There are various provisions which appear to limit substantially the freedom of parties to choose what law to apply to their non-life policy of insurance. The Insurance Regulations apply more widely than the insurance directives themselves as they apply to risks in EEA states not just EU states.
