Many branches and subsidiaries of leading UK insurance companies and brokers are present in the Islands. The industry includes unit-linked life assurance companies intended principally for UK expatriates. In addition Guernsey has many captive insurance companies which are formed by major corporations to underwrite their own group risks in whole or in part and which are usually managed by specialist insurance company managers.

The captive insurance business forms the major part of the insurance industry in Guernsey. The Insurance Business (Guernsey) Law 1986 regulates and controls captive and local insurance business together with insurance company managers by the issue of licences. Guernsey is the largest captive insurance company domicile in Europe with 335 captives as at 31 December 1996. Additional information regarding captive insurance companies is available in the KPMG publication Insurance in Guernsey.

The company law in Jersey was amended in 1983 to allow the formation of captive insurance companies and more recent amendments via the Insurance Business (Jersey) Law 1996 have reorganised the legislative framework to mirror that established in Guernsey. Consequently it is anticipated that the captive insurance industry in Jersey will develop rapidly over the next few years.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

For further information contact Jonathan G. Hooley on Tel (indirect line): + 44 (0) 1481 721000, Tel (direct line): +44 (0) 1481 719544, Fax: +44 (0) 1481 722373.