Right to oblivion (creditor insurance) and other measures to facilitate access to credit (Bill 1085)

Government Bill 1085 on the right to oblivion and other measures to facilitate access to credit (12 articles) was received by the Parliament (Conseil National) on 22 November 2023.

It follows on from draft law no. 254 (of parliamentary origin) adopted on 15 June 2022.

The Law will be supplemented by regulations (Sovereign Order and Ministerial Order).

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SUMMARY

→ Enshrinement of the right to oblivion (subject to conditions), which would make it possible not to declare an old pathology (appearing on the list to be drawn up by sovereign ordinance, which should include cancers and hepatitis C) to an insurer or credit institution when taking out a loan insurance contract, for applications to grant a consumer loan or a professional loan intended for the acquisition of premises or furniture and equipment necessary for the professional activity, or a property loan.

→ Obtaining loan insurance policies on standard or similar terms, i.e. without any additional premium or exclusion of cover, or with capped additional premiums for people who present or have presented an aggravated health risk and have declared it, provided that the pathology from which the person suffers is included in the list of pathologies set out in a reference grid, for property loans or business loans for the acquisition of premises or furniture and equipment necessary for the business (consumer loans excluded).

→ Prohibition on insurers or credit institutions retaining medical information relating to a condition covered by the right to oblivion.

→ Exemption in certain cases from providing the health questionnaire or undergoing medical examinations.

→ Possibility of referring a dispute between professionals (credit institutions, insurance companies or insurers) and people presenting an aggravated health risk to a mediation commission before any legal action is taken.

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Foundations of the reform

The reform is based on the Principality's international commitments in the fight against all forms of discrimination:

• Convention for the Protection of Human Rights (ECHR) (Article 14 - Prohibition of discrimination) ;
• United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, whose purpose is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities and to promote respect for their inherent dignity (Article 1).

It also draws on the work of international organisations in this area, including:

• OECD Report, How's life? 2020: Measuring well-being (June 2020), OECD Publishing, Paris;
• PACE (Council of Europe) Resolution 2373 of 21 April 2021, Discrimination against persons dealing with chronic and long-term illnesses, Social, Health and Sustainable Development Committee, based on the report by Béatrice FRESKO-ROLFO (Monaco, ALDE), which calls on national authorities not only to adopt a clear definition of the right to oblivion, but also to implement this protection effectively and uniformly.

Finally, Bill 1085 takes account of French law (Public Health Code) and insurance regulations in the context of Franco-Monegasque relations:

• Convention AERAS, which in France aims to facilitate access to home or business loans and consumer credit for people whose state of health does not allow them to obtain insurance cover under the standard conditions of the contract, i.e. without any increase in rate or exclusion of cover. It has been revised several times since it was signed on 6 July 2006, and has strengthened the right to oblivion (Article L1141-5, Article L1141-2 of the French Public Health Code). The Agreement is concluded between the French State, professional organisations representing credit institutions, finance companies, insurance companies, mutual insurance companies and provident institutions, as well as national organisations representing patients and users of the healthcare system, and disabled people.
• Convention relating to the regulation of insurance, signed in Paris on 18 May 1963, which provides that insurance regulations established by the Prince's Government "shall be coordinated with those of the French Republic" (Article 1).

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