INSURANCE ACT, 1953

AN ACT TO ENABLE THE MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE TO GIVE GUARANTEES WITH RESPECT TO THE INSURANCE OF RISKS IN CONNECTION WITH EXTERNAL TRADE AND TO AMEND THE LAW RELATING TO THE CARRYING ON OF ASSURANCE BUSINESS. [24th March, 1953.]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—

1 Interpretation.

1.—(1) In this Act—

“the Act of 1936” means the Insurance Act, 1936 (No. 45 of 1936);

“guarantee” includes a contract to indemnify, whether wholly or in part, against loss of any description;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Industry and Commerce.

• (2) This Act shall be construed as one with the Act of 1936.

2 Export guarantees.

2.—(1) For the purpose of encouraging exports, the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may make arrangements for giving to, or for the benefit of, persons carrying on a business or profession in the State guarantees in connection with the export, manufacture, treatment or distribution of goods, the rendering of services or any other matter which appears to the Minister conducive to that purpose.

• (2) Arrangements under this section may include agreements with assurance companies for the re-insurance of guarantees given by them.

• (3) The aggregate amount of the liability at any time of the Minister for principal moneys in respect of arrangements under this section shall not exceed two million pounds.

• (4) Any amount required to meet a liability incurred by the Minister under this section shall be advanced out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof and shall be repaid to the Central Fund out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

• (5) For the purpose of providing money for any advance under this section the Minister for Finance may borrow from any person any sum or sums, and for the purpose of such borrowing he may create and issue securities bearing such rate of interest and subject to such conditions as to repayment, redemption or otherwise as he thinks fit, and shall pay the moneys so borrowed into the Exchequer.

• (6) The principal of or any interest on any securities issued under this section and the expenses incurred in connection with the issue of such securities shall be charged on the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof.

• (7) All moneys received by the Minister in pursuance of arrangements made under this section shall be collected and taken in such manner as the Minister for Finance may direct and shall be paid into or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in accordance with the directions of the Minister for Finance.

3 Accounts and returns.

3.—(1) The Minister shall cause to be prepared, in such form as the Minister for Finance may direct, an account of the receipts and expenditure for each financial year in respect of arrangements under section 2 of this Act and the accounts shall be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General and laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

• (2) The Minister shall cause to be prepared half-yearly a return showing the aggregate amount of the liabilities of the Minister in respect of arrangements under section 2 of this Act entered into during the preceding six months and the return shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

4 Grant of assurance licences to foreign companies under reciprocal arrangements.

4.—(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any provision of the Act of 1936—

• (a) the Minister shall not be precluded from granting an application by a foreign company for an assurance licence to carry on fire, accident or mechanically propelled vehicle insurance business by reason merely of the fact that the company did not carry on business in the State or had not a place of business in the State on a date specified in such provision if the Minister considers in any case that the grant of a licence to a foreign company will facilitate the grant of reciprocal advantages to an Irish company in the country under the law of which the foreign company is incorporated;

• (b) the amount of the deposit to be made by a foreign company under section 22 of the Act of 1936 shall be equal to the deposit required to be made in that country by an Irish company, where that amount is greater than the deposit specified in such section.

• (2) The Minister may attach to a licence to which this section applies such conditions as he thinks proper and may revoke the licence if it appears to him that any such condition is not being complied with.

• (3) Section 16 of the Act of 1936 shall not apply in relation to an application for a licence to which this section applies.

5 Short title and collective citation.

5.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Insurance Act, 1953.

• (2) The Insurance Acts, 1909 to 1938, and this Act may be cited together as the Insurance Acts, 1909 to 1953.