Legal basis for pursuit of insurance and reinsurance activity in Poland

The rules of the pursuit of the activity in the scope of personal insurance and property insurance, activity in the scope of reinsurance, the practicing of the profession of actuary, the exercising of the insurance supervision over insurance undertakings and reinsurance undertakings, the exercising of the insurance supervision over insurance undertakings and reinsurance undertakings in groups as well as organization and functioning of  the insurance industry self-government have been settled in the Act of 11^th September 2015 on insurance and reinsurance activity.

Insurance activity shall mean the pursuit of insurance operations connected with offering and providing protection against the risk of occurrence of the effects of random events.

Reinsurance activity shall mean the pursuit of reinsurance operations connected with assuming the risk ceded by insurance or reinsurance undertaking and further cession of the assumed risk.

Insurance undertaking may pursue insurance activity solely in the form of a joint stock company, a mutual insurance undertaking or an European company as defined in Council Regulation No 2157/2001 of  8 October 2001 on the Statute for a European company.

The Act classifies the risks according to sections, classes and types of insurance:

• Section I covers life insurance,
• Section II covers other personal and property insurance (non-life insurance).

Insurance undertaking shall not pursue activity in the scope of life insurance and in the scope of non-life insurance simultaneously.

Reinsurance undertaking  may pursue reinsurance activity in the form of a joint stock company, a mutual reinsurance undertaking or an European company as defined in Council Regulation No 2157/2001 of  8 October 2001 on the Statute for a European company.

The pursuit of insurance or reinsurance activity shall require prior authorisation issued by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.

For more information about insurance undertakings operating on the Polish market please visit the website of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.

Basic statistical annual data on the Polish insurance market

As at December 31, 2023, there were 51 licensed insurance undertakings performing insurance activity in the territory of the Republic of Poland, of which 23 were life insurance undertakings and 28 were non-life insurance undertakings. Furthermore there was 1 licensed domestic reinsurance undertaking. The total gross premium written in 2023 amounted to 78,89 billion PLN and increased by 9,15% as compared to the previous year.

The gross premium written in life insurance sector amounted to 22,84 billion PLN whereas the gross premium written in non-life insurance sector amounted to 56,05 billion PLN. The gross premium written in life insurance sector increased by 6,2% and in non-life insurance sector increased by 10,4% as compared to the previous year.

Insurance industry self-government

The organization of the insurance industry self-government is the Polish Chamber of Insurance.
The Polish Chamber of Insurance represents domestic insurance undertakings, foreign insurance undertakings operating in the territory of the Republic of Poland and reinsurance undertakings belonging to it and acts to solve the problems of the Polish insurance market.

For more information about the activity of the Polish Chamber of Insurance please visit the website of the Polish Chamber of Insurance.