For the second time, the world meeting of reinsurers had to take place on the computer screen this week instead of the usual one in Monte Carlo. The coronavirus made sure of that. Industry giants such as Munich Re, Swiss Re, Hannover Re and their customers, insurers from Allianz to Zurich, should take the opportunity and turn their backs on the tax haven on the Côte d’Azur permanently.
It no longer fits in with the times for an industry to make a pilgrimage to this strange place, which has made climate protection and general public services on its flags, from old-age insurance to cyber protection.
The Rendez-Vous de Septembre, the official title, has been taking place since 1957. At the time, French companies were tired of always having to go to London to talk about reinsurance. They proposed the meeting in Monte Carlo and, with a rally, a sailing regatta and numerous receptions and dinners, provided a framework that was intended to attract guests from all over the world and their wives.
Every year around 3,000 insurance managers, industrial buyers, lawyers and journalists from 80 countries travel to the tiny principality for a week. Little remains of the glamor of earlier years. The participants meet in ballrooms and corridors of the hotels in small groups or in pairs at specially set up tables. Then they negotiate the reinsurance contracts for the coming year. A Japanese insurer wants to insure itself against major losses from earthquakes, the forest fires in California are discussed, the hurricanes and floods in Europe. The reinsurers assume some of the major risks; without reinsurance there would be hardly any insurance. In Monte Carlo, there is haggling over the amount of premiums and the scope of coverage, always every half-hour or hourly.
There are also some receptions and dinners for good customers – but for most of the attendees Monte Carlo means hard work. The costs are enormous, you can hardly find a hotel room for less than 500 euros. The hotel owners appear to be the direct descendants of the Genoese pirates who once ruled here. Nevertheless, according to the supporters of Monte Carlo, the meeting is worthwhile: because there you can meet 40 or 50 customers in one place in a week. Visiting them all would take weeks, cost a lot more, and be significantly more damaging to the environment.
There are good arguments for a world meeting, but very good arguments against.
You’re right. Also with the fact that such a meeting can only be held in a small place with a high hotel capacity. Monte Carlo and Baden-Baden have both. The second reinsurance meeting takes place every year at the end of October in the southern German spa town.
There are good arguments for a world meeting. But very good arguments against holding it in Monte Carlo, the paradise of tax evaders in Europe. The insurance industry has been trying to change its image for years. Instead of simply paying claims, companies want to be perceived as life companions for their customers, from securing the home and the car to health insurance and care for old age. Reinsurers have spent large sums of money on research and warned of climate change early on. Most support projects in poor countries, including drought protection for small farmers. It simply no longer fits this new image to gather in the artificial world on the Mediterranean. If reinsurers and insurers want to meet in person, they should choose another location.