Smethurst, James; Heukamp, Wessel; Goodliffe, Jonathan; Miller, Royce --- "Conduct of Business Regulation: A Survey of the UK Regime and a Comparison with the US, German and Hong Kong Approach" [2012] ELECD 169; in Burling, Julian; Lazarus, Kevin (eds), "Research Handbook on International Insurance Law and Regulation" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2012)

Book Title: Research Handbook on International Insurance Law and Regulation

Editor(s): Burling, Julian; Lazarus, Kevin

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781849807883

Section: Chapter 15

Section Title: Conduct of Business Regulation: A Survey of the UK Regime and a Comparison with the US, German and Hong Kong Approach

Author(s): Smethurst, James; Heukamp, Wessel; Goodliffe, Jonathan; Miller, Royce

Number of pages: 34

Extract:

15 Conduct of business regulation: a survey of the UK
regime and a comparison with the US, German and
Hong Kong approach
James Smethurst, Wessel Heukamp, Jonathan Goodliffe and
Royce Miller1



1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Scope of this Chapter

This chapter focuses on conduct of business rules (often abbreviated to `COB' and in
some countries referred to as `market conduct' rules) relating to insurance business. These
rules are derived in some jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom, from the regulation
of insurance within public law, rather than from the private law of insurance contracts. In
other jurisdictions such as France and Germany, many conduct of business rules will be
included in the main insurance code or insurance contract law statute.2
We take a comparative approach, focusing on certain aspects of the rules in the UK and
comparing them to those adopted in Germany, Hong Kong and the United States of
America in particular. We make some additional comparison with certain rules in France
and Italy. In the USA each state has its own regulatory regime, although there are
considerable common elements, achieved partly through the co-ordinating work of the
National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC has drafted
model statutes3 that apply to numerous areas of insurance regulation. Almost all of these
model statutes have been enacted into law by the states, albeit with many minor and a few
major changes. Each state has its own insurance code containing adoptions or adapta-
tions of the model ...