With the new draft implementing decree which makes effective the obligation for companies to take out an insurance policy against natural catastrophes, provided for by the last budget law (213/2023), a further step forward towards approval is taken . The measure, explained in recent days by the head of cabinet of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Stefano Varone, is “in the process of moving towards the Council of State”, and “following his opinion there will be any adjustments” , but the goal for the conclusion of this journey is the end of the year. There will be a transitional regime that “will guarantee the space for businesses and insurance companies to adapt”, added Varone.
The structure of the decree has remained substantially unchanged, but some of the critical aspects have been revised. Firstly, in the definition of “insured”, the clarification regarding the insurance obligation on the user of the goods has been eliminated, in the event that the owner and the user company do not coincide, and the goods are not already covered by the owner’s insurance. This clarification mainly concerned entities involved in leasing or similar contracts. The removal of this indication could be due to the fact that the insurance obligation is generally established by the leasing contract, and therefore its mention was superfluous. With this change, leasing companies are now included among those subject to the insurance obligation.
Construction abuses are excluded from coverage
Another significant change concerns the definition of “building”, in which the part that has been eliminated
it excluded buildings under construction already insured against damage caused by the events foreseen by the decree, which seems to confirm the adoption of specific policies for these risks, such as Car (Contractors All Risks) policies. In the definition of plants and machinery, the specification that included vehicles registered with the Pra was deleted. It is specified that real estate properties that are illegally built or built without the necessary authorizations are excluded from coverage: a change that eliminates the previous wording regarding maintenance obligations, which was difficult to interpret.
Events that must be included in insurance coverage are earthquakes; floods, inundations and overflows; landslides. The obligation concerns all companies registered in the Company Register with registered office in Italy, as well as foreign companies with a permanent establishment in Italian territory. Agricultural businesses, as defined by article 2135 of the Civil Code, are not obliged to take out catastrophe policies for their assets.
Possible timing difficulties for SMEs
“We believe that the regulation is crucial to align Italy with international best practices – says Carlo Impallomeni, CEO of Alpha Broker – and to improve the protection of companies. However, we believe that some issues have not been adequately addressed. In particular, the topic of the avoidance of the obligation by insurance companies deserves greater attention, as does the timing for the implementation of the changes envisaged by the Ministerial Decree. Small to medium sized businesses may encounter difficulty in meeting the 90 days required for policy compliance. This obligation also risks creating problems for intermediaries, especially if companies do not promptly provide updated renewal conditions.”
According to Luigi Federico Signorini, president of Ivass, the prerequisites for the success of the reform are “technical sustainability on the supply side, full accessibility on the demand side. A wide effective diffusion of coverage is necessary for the concrete implementation of mutuality mechanisms. Speed and operational efficiency will be absolutely essential in the damage assessment and settlement phase.” For Signorini “we will have to exploit the practical experience of the events of recent times, which are unfortunately frequent, and at the same time prepare well for the expansion of the pool of insured people”.
An amendment by the League to the budget also provides for recognizing as deductible the expenses incurred by subjects obliged to stipulate insurance contracts. The cost of the proposed measure is estimated at 15.6 million from 2025. (lt)
