European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union, Maria Albuquerque, has indicated that the Commission is not planning immediate legislative follow-up on the joint EIOPA-ESM proposal for a European risk-sharing mechanism for natural disasters, instead prioritising awareness-raising and financial literacy to narrow the climate protection gap. In a written answer to a parliamentary question from four Portuguese MEPs, Albuquerque stressed the role of insurance distributors and undertakings in improving household awareness of climate-related loss coverage, and noted that the Commission is investigating whether premium benefits for precautionary action could help raise risk awareness. The answer, published on 27 July 2026, responds to a question submitted by Lídia Pereira, Sebastião Bugalho, Paulo Cunha and Paulo do Nascimento Cabral, all from the European People's Party (PPE). The MEPs had asked about the Commission's intentions following the 9 April 2026 joint document from the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) and the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), which proposed a two-pillar mechanism: a European insurance pool financed by risk-based premiums and a loan-based backstop for extreme events, with an estimated capacity of EUR 10-65 billion. The document identified Portugal among member states with the largest protection gaps, particularly for wildfires, floods, heatwaves and earthquakes.
Albuquerque's answer contains no concrete proposals, numerical targets or deadlines for legislative action. She described the EIOPA-ESM paper as providing 'technical input to inform policy discussions' and said it would feed the Commission's reflections alongside national initiatives such as Portugal's planned disaster fund. The Commissioner pointed to the Preparedness Union Strategy, adopted earlier, as the framework for improving public awareness and risk information through tools like the Risk Data Hub, and for supporting prevention via the 'Preparedness by Design' principle. The answer leaves open whether the Commission will eventually propose a European insurance pool or loan backstop, and does not address the role of capital markets in strengthening the pool's capacity, as the MEPs had asked. Institutional follow-up is expected to take the form of further technical work with EIOPA and engagement with member states, but no legislative timetable has been signalled.