Changes in regulatory reporting for insurers are being debated within the industry and the outcome remains uncertain, but after surveying insurance leaders StoneRiver discovered some surprising opinions from insurers.

StoneRiver reports there has been increased pressure to bring the U.S. insurance regulatory environment more in a line with international practices. However, survey results indicate that a surprising number of participants expressed a lack of concern.

Even among financial executives and survey participants representing large companies, 40 percent either hadn't given it much thought or didn't expect changes to impact them directly.

"It's true that some regulations affect only companies that are international or publicly held," says Connie Jasper Woodroof, StoneRiver liaison to the NAIC. "But if the industry moves to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) the changes will most certainly affect every U.S. company regardless of size or ownership."

Survey participants also weighed in on the future of statutory reporting.

Participants saw little need for change, with 61 percent in favor of retaining the current system. About 33 percent felt the industry should switch to U.S. GAAP, and six percent thought the best solution was to produce one statement for regulators and a different one for non-regulatory use.

The survey also collected opinions on the value of Supervisory Colleges to be used by the NAIC, implementation of the Reinsurance Regulatory Modernization Act, and changes in SOX requirements.

Download the complete report at www.stoneriver.com/whitepaper.

Special Reports /

Regulatory Reform May Catch Insurers by Surprise in 2011

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