Insurance Law - Portugal

The Insurance Law Department at Belzuz Abogados has a team of experienced professionals specialised in dealing with issues related to the various aspects of insurance activity, advising both insurance companies, insurance distributors and related entities, as well as individuals.

The vast knowledge, specialisation and multidisciplinary vocation of Belzuz Abogados, with particular emphasis on the Commercial and Corporate, Tax, Labour and Litigation departments, allow us to provide comprehensive advice in the area of insurance, contributing added value to our national and international clients.

The presence of Belzuz Abogados in Portugal and Spain, with offices in PortoLisbon and Madrid,, allows us to offer the insurance sector a global service throughout the Iberian Peninsula, providing advice from the authorisation and registration procedure of insurance companies and distributors before the supervisory authority, to the day-to-day management of insurance sector entities, including matters related to regulation and supervision, of a prudential and behavioural nature, as well as issues concerning corporate organisation and insurance distribution, including the bancassurance channel.

The Insurance Law Department has wide experience in the incorporation and restructuring of national and international insurance companies, distributors and claims representatives, as well as in supporting the implementation of the respective business models, providing advice on a wide variety of products, and is particularly suited to, with regard to damage insurance, to the areas of civil liability, including product liability and civil liability arising from motor vehicles, and to the areas of financial insurance, as well as, with regard to personal insurance, to life insurance and complementary insurance, including Unit Linked insurance, and accident (labour) and health insurance.

Also in the area of insurance distribution, Belzuz Abogados advises both insurance companies and insurance and reinsurance distributors on the implementation of the Legal Framework for Insurance Distribution. Its legal team also provides advice on the analysis, preparation, drafting and review of all types of contracts related to insurance distribution, in addition to playing an active role in mediating relations between clients and the supervisory authorities.

InsuraLexWith a clear international vocation, the firm has been a member, since 2002, of Insuralex (Global Insurance Lawyers Group), a group formed by prestigious Insurance Law specialists worldwide.


 The Insurance Law Department offers comprehensive advice on the following matters:

Civil Liability
  • Submission of claims derived from automobile accidents and requests for recovery to the responsible entities;
  • Extra-judicial notification and establishing negotiations with the entities responsible for claims and their management;
  • Preparation of legal opinions on the division of responsibilities within the scope of traffic accidents, as well as on compensation values;
  • Legal advice to insurance companies and individuals in civil liability legal proceedings;
  • Judicial and extra-judicial support and management of proceedings arising from accidents at work;
  • Support and judicial and extrajudicial management of lawsuits arising from civil liability within the scope of civil construction and building rehabilitation activity;
  • Monitoring of lawsuits arising from traffic accidents occurring in Portugal and abroad with vehicles, in accordance with the CMR Convention;
  • Sponsorship and monitoring of the entire claims management process at the Centro de Informação, Mediação, Provedoria e Arbitragem de Seguros – CIMPAS.

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

Professional indemnity law
  • Management and out-of-court settlement of claims in the context of professional liability for lawyers, solicitors and enforcement agents, health professionals, architects and engineers, among others;
  • Monitoring of professional liability lawsuits;
  • Preparation of legal opinions on civil liability arising from acts or omissions occurring in the exercise of the profession;
  • Analysis and monitoring of any situations of medical liability;
  • Analysis and monitoring of eventual situations of liability of directors, managers and administrators (D&O);

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

Insurance contract wording
  • Support in determining, interpreting and applying applicable legislation;
  • Analysis, review and drafting of general, special and particular conditions of insurance policies, in accordance with the applicable rules, as well as pre-contractual information and the standardised insurance product information document (IPID);
  • Definition of procedures and documentation in respect of the execution of the duties and onus of the parties to the contract, namely in respect of the provision of information by the parties, payment of premiums and participation in claims;
  • Definition of procedures and documentation regarding the advertising (marketing) of insurance contracts;
  • Definition of procedures and documentation concerning the distance marketing of insurance contracts;
  • Assistance to insurance companies, including contacts with supervisory authorities.

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

Corporate Area
  • Establishment of insurance companies, insurance distributors and claims representatives;
  • Establishment of branches and subsidiaries of EU insurance companies and insurance distributors under the right of establishment;
  • Fiscal representation in Portugal of foreign companies under the freedom to provide services regime;
  • Advice on procedures for access to the insurance business, extension of activity, revocation of authorisations, infringements and penalties;
  • Preparation of the necessary policies and documentation from the compliance point of view;
  • Amendment of by-laws;
  • Monitoring of corporate life (shareholders' meetings and board of directors' resolutions, as well as other necessary acts);
  • Mergers and acquisitions of insurance companies and insurance distributors.

 

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Contractual execution
  • Handling of claims investigation processes;
  • Pre-litigation and judicial claims, transactions and calculation of compensation;
  • Assessment of material and personal damages;
  • Institutional relations with the Autoridade de Supervisão de Seguros e de Fundos de Pensões (ASF) and the Associação Portuguesa de Seguradoras (APS), as well as acting before the Customer Ombudsman and the Fundo de Garantia Automóvel (FGA), among others;
  • Judicial and extra-judicial defence in claims by policyholders, insured persons and/or third parties;
  • Judicial representation in the scope of the following types of insurance contracts:
    • Civil liability insurance arising from motor vehicle circulation;
    • Other third party liability insurance: namely general third party liability insurance, compulsory or optional, professional and enterprise insurance (namely construction, health professional and D&O) and product insurance;
    • Damage insurance: namely fire, theft, among others;
    • Financial, credit and surety insurance;
    • People insurance: life and complementary insurance, including Unit Linked, as well as accident and health insurance.

 

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Life, health, damage and personal accident insurance
  • Submission of claims with insurance companies to trigger the insurance contract;
  • Out-of-court management and negotiation of compensation due to the injured parties;
  • Initiation and monitoring of legal proceedings to ascertain responsibility in the context of life, damage, health and personal accident insurance contracts;
  • Preparation of studies and opinions on concrete situations of possible insurance claims;
  • Support and judicial and extrajudicial management of processes arising from multi-risk, fire and theft insurance

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

Legal advice to insurance companies and individuals
  • Legal advice on the design, preparation and negotiation of insurance and reinsurance products;
  • Preparation of legal opinions on various aspects of the insurance area;
  • Intervention with the supervisory entities in order to obtain clarifications and understandings from them regarding certain legal issues;
  • Drafting, review and analysis of all types of contracts;
  • Analysis, negotiation and implementation of business models with other entities;
  • Providing legal assistance in disputes arising from life and non-life insurance;
  • Support in claims management;
  • Filing complaints with insurance companies and the Customer Ombudsman.

 

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Insurance distribution
  • Legal advice and consultancy on insurance regulatory matters and pension plans and funds;
  • Full legal advice to insurance companies and other insurance distributors on the implementation of the Insurance Distribution Legal Regime;
  • Drafting, analysis and review of insurance distribution and co-mediation contracts, as well as of the policies of approval and design of insurance products, treatment of policyholders, insured parties, beneficiaries or injured third parties, management of complaints and of the Customer Ombudsman;
  • Definition of the procedures and documents necessary for the promotion and marketing of insurance products, as well as for compliance with the obligations arising from the Legal Regime of Insurance Distribution;
  • Establishment of agreements for the development, joint marketing and distribution of insurance products under the insurance-banking regime;
  • Advice and consultancy in the establishment of partnerships between national and international insurance companies and other insurance distributors;
  • Establishment of permanent contacts with supervisory entities, namely by submitting consultations to the regulatory body;
  • Analysis of insurance and pension fund products offered by insurance companies and pension fund management companies, as well as their adaptation to the rules in force;
  • Provision of legal advice on acquisitions and transfers of insurance portfolios, on the establishment of partnerships between domestic and foreign groups and on distribution agreements.

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

Data protection
  • Legal advice and consultancy to entities in the insurance sector on the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation;
  • Legal advice on the collection and processing of personal data;
  • Drafting of procedures and internal policies on privacy and personal data protection;
  • Conducting audits of the systems in use for processing personal data, with a view to identifying needs and diagnosing the existence of critical points where measures need to be implemented;
  • Designing and adapting means of preventing and reporting potential violations of personal data.

 

More information about the Insurance law Department | Lisbon & Porto (Portugal)

 

Madrid

Belzuz Abogados - Madrid office

Nuñez de Balboa 115 bis 1

  28006 Madrid

+34 91 562 50 76

+34 91 562 45 40

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Lisbon

Belzuz Abogados - Lisbon office

Av. Duque d´Ávila, 141 – 1º Dtº

  1050-081 Lisbon

+351 21 324 05 30

+351 21 347 84 52

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Oporto

Belzuz Abogados - Oporto office

Rua Julio Dinis 204, Off 314

  4050-318 Oporto

+351 22 938 94 52

+351 22 938 94 54

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Associations

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