Bank of Russia clarifies rules for interaction between insurers and their contractors acting as insurance agents
An insurer’s contractor is considered an insurance agent if they perform all or individual contractual responsibilities legally classified as those of an insurance agent. This follows from the Bank of Russia's information letter.
The insurance company in this case is obliged to control its intermediary’s operations, include it in the register of insurance agents and brokers and make relevant regulatory disclosures. For mandatory insurance services, insurer and agent interaction is subject to fee caps.
The Bank of Russia has recently detected attempts of some insurance companies to sidestep compliance with legislative requirements. Such companies and their contractors are concluding advertising / information support contracts. However, these contracts are essentially none other than contracts between an insurer and an insurance agent, the regulator notes.