The EU Says Insurers Can No Longer Discriminate On The Basis Of Gender

See EU Closes Insurers' Gender Rate Gap from The Wall Street Journal, 3-2-11. This is actually bad news for women. Here are some key excerpts:

"The European Union's highest court declared illegal the widespread practice of charging men and women different rates for insurance, setting in motion an overhaul of how life, auto and health policies are written across Europe.

Two Belgian men had challenged the higher life-insurance premiums charged to members of their sex, arguing that it was discriminatory. In a ruling Tuesday, the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice agreed.

The judgment can't be appealed. It will have vast implications: Insurers routinely charge women, who live longer, lower premiums for life insurance; young male drivers, who statistically cause more accidents, pay higher premiums for auto policies."

"A study last year commissioned by the British insurers' group found excluding sex would have a particular impact on the auto policies of young women, whose premiums could rise by as much as 25%."