The National Union of Insurance Agents (SNAGAT) has voiced its objection against a proposed insurance Bill that it said would pose a serious threat to the livelihood of insurance agents if passed in its current form.
Mr Mohamed Acheb, SNAGAT President, said in a statement that the supervisory authority, the General Insurance Committee (CGA), had unilaterally approved new elements in the proposed legislative amendment, modifying the conditions relating to the practice of insurance agents without consulting relevant parties.
SNAGAT raised reservations over three proposed changes: allowing non-professionals to sell insurance; requiring agents to be re-accredited every five years, and withdrawing compensation payable to an agent who leaves the business.
Mr Acheb described the move to allow non-professionals to sell insurance as a “total aberration”. He raised the examples of car dealers who will be able to stipulate contracts of insurance for the vehicles sold and banks selling motor insurance.
The second issue is that insurance agents would have to take a test every five years to renew their accreditation. Mr Acheb said that no other profession in Tunisia is subject to this type of requirement.
The third issue is that of compensation payable to an insurance agent who leaves the business for health reasons, advanced age or when he is in conflict with his company. To date, the law gives him the right to the compensatory indemnity.
Mr Acheb said: “The compensatory allowance is a kind of goodwill ...recognised by the (insurance) company as payable to its agent notwithstanding any fault committed by the latter. The fault committed by the agent may be sanctioned by the company and, in the event the fault has a financial impact on the company, the insurer is entitled to deduct the amount lost from the amount of compensation.”
The new Bill proposes to withdraw this compensation from the agent.
“This Bill will kill the profession of the insurance agent. It will certainly lead to the destruction of a large number of jobs especially in deprived regions,” the statement said.
SNAGAT also stated that “insurance agents are determined to block this Bill by all legal means while remaining open to all negotiations, without corporatist motives, and in the interests of the Tunisian economy”.