Public statement relating to Enforcement Action between Central Bank of Ireland and Philip Smith

• Date: 12 December 2025

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Enforcement Action

Central Bank of Ireland

and

Philip Smith

Mr Philip Smith, former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Executive Director of RSA

Insurance Ireland DAC disqualified for 13 years by the Central Bank of Ireland for his

admitted participation in a breach of financial services law by RSAII

On 1 December 2025 the Central Bank of Ireland reprimanded Mr Smith and

disqualified him for 13 years from being a person concerned in the management of a

regulated financial service provider for his participation in a breach by RSA Insurance

Ireland DAC (RSAII or the Firm) of Article 13(1)(a) of the European Communities

(Non-Life Insurance) Framework Regulations 1994, S.I. No. 359 of 1994 (the 1994

Regulations) (the Prescribed Contravention).

Article 13(1)(a) requires insurance undertakings to maintain adequate technical

reserves in respect of all underwriting liabilities. RSAII was previously fined in 2018

for the Prescribed Contravention having admitted that on 30 September 2013, there

was a significant shortfall in its technical reserves resulting from the under-reserving

of 17 large loss claims.

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Large Loss Claims, due to the severity, nature and/or extent of the insured event,

represent a significant liability for insurance undertakings. RSAII’s procedures

required large loss claim reserve estimates to be assessed by claims handlers and the

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On 18 December 2018, the Central Bank reprimanded and imposed a fine of €5,000,000 on RSAII, which was

reduced to €3,500,000 with the application of the s ettlement discount. This related to four breaches of financial

services law, including the failure to establish and maintain technical reserves in accordance with Regulation 13(1)(a)

of the 1994 Regulations. The settlement with RSAII can be found here.