On 2 February 2017 European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published a Consultation Paper on Guidelines on complex Insurance-Based Investment Products (IBIPs) that incorporate a structure which makes it difficult for the customer to understand the risks involved. The Guidelines cover the assessment of all types of IBIPs. They include criteria to identify product features, which may be difficult for the customer to understand. They address, for example, the nature of the charges paid by the customer and ability for the customer to surrender the product before maturity. IBIPs which include such features will be deemed complex and therefore not eligible for sale via execution-only.

[Source: EIOPA]